The Bond Between Two Brothers
by bakayaronarkonoyaro
Summary: A bunch of cute stories put together about Itachi and Sasuke with their beautiful bond between them. No Uchihacest. Fluff and stuff!
1. Chapter 1

AN: Hey guys, this is my first time writing a fanfiction, and it's about the Uchiha brothers! In this fic, there are going to be a bunch of stories of Itachi and Sasuke.I absolutely love the bond between them! There will not be any Uchihacest in my stories (sorry for those who like Uchihacest) but there definitely will be fluff!

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

* * *

It was a lovely day in Konoha. It was sunny out and everyone was going around the village meeting up with friends, shopping, and doing regular things people do.

Heading toward the Uchiha district, was a raven haired boy not over the age of 13. It was none other than the clan's prodigy, Itachi Uchiha.

He had just come back from an ANBU mission, and was dying to get back home. He was exhausted. It wasn't a hard mission, but someone on his team messed up and he had to pay the price for it. All he could think about now was collapsing on his bed and taking a nice nap.

"I'm home." Itachi called out as he stepped in his house. He then realized how much he missed his home and his family, especially his little brother. While Itachi was taking off his shoes, he heard an eager, little voice say, "Ita-nii!" then felt a small little body latch on to him.

"Hello to you too, Sasuke." Itachi said with a smile as he ruffled Sasuke's hair.

"Nii-san, now that your back, can we play together?" Sasuke asked excitedly.

"Sure otouto, but let me get out of my uniform first and then we can play, okay?" Itachi said, while Sasuke let go of him.

"Okay!"

Itachi headed towards his room to get changed. He took off his ANBU uniform and headed to the bathroom to take a shower. Once he was done, he headed towards the kitchen to greet his mother and look for Sasuke.

He found both his mother and Sasuke in the kitchen. His mother was in the middle of making dinner, while Sasuke was sitting at the table waiting for Itachi.

"Hi, kaa-san." Itachi greeted his mother.

"Oh, Itachi! Welcome home, dear." Mikoto said while cutting carrots.

Sasuke got up from his seat.

"Let's go, nii-san, what should we do? We can go outside, go to the park, or we can do some training!" the 7 year old said, with a smile.

Sasuke's smile was so pure, so innocent, that Itachi couldn't help but smile back.

"I don't know, otouto. What do you feel like-"

"Itachi," a gruff voice interrupted. It was their father, Fugaku Uchiha.

"Welcome back, I want to discuss a few things with you about you last mission."

Sasuke's face fell, he knew that when his father was done talking to his brother, they wouldn't have much time to play. It broke Itachi's heart seeing his brother's face fall like that.

"Hai, tou-san" Itachi answered in an emotionless tone of voice.

Fugaku started walking to a room where they can talk, motioning for Itachi to follow. Before Itachi started walking, he turned to Sasuke and said, "Sorry Sasuke, I'll play with you once I'm done talking with tou-san." And poked Sasuke's forehead. He then headed toward the room their father entered.

Looking dejected, Sasuke rubbed the spot his brother poked and started walking toward his room. He sat on his bed wondering what to do now.

 _Nii-an is always so busy,_ Sasuke thought. _What should I do now? I guess I can draw some pictures while I wait for nii-san._ With this thought in mind, Sasuke took out some pieces of paper and crayons and got to work.

* * *

The talk Itachi and his father had lasted for about an hour. By then, dinner was ready. Itachi wasn't really paying attention to what is father was saying during their talk, he was caught up thinking about Sasuke and feeling guilty for making him wait.

"Itachi can you get your brother here for dinner? He should be in his room." Mikoto asked.

"Hai, kaa-san." Itachi answered.

Itachi walked down the hall to his brother's room. When he slid the door open, Itachi was met with an adorable sight of Sasuke fast asleep on the floor, with crayons and paper scattered around him. Itachi smiled warmly at the adorable scene, he almost didn't want to wake him up, but their parents were waiting.

Itachi walked towards Sasuke and started to gently shake him awake.

"Sasuke, you have to wake up otouto, dinner is ready." Itachi said in a gentle voice.

Sasuke's eyes started to flutter open. Big, adorable onyx eyes immediately looked up at his brother. Sasuke then sat up, rubbing his eyes.

"Aniki? Are you done talking to tou-san?" Sasuke asked tiredly, still rubbing one eye.

Itachi smiled

"Yes, come on, dinner is ready."

"Can we play after dinner, nii-san?" Sasuke asked, looking hopeful.

"Sure, otouto." Itachi answered, ruffling Sasuke's black hair.

"I'll race you to the the kitchen!" Sasuke said, as the grogginess from his nap suddenly disappeared and started running out of the room.

Itachi got up and ran after his brother. Both brothers were now running down the hall, with Sasuke in the lead. Although he was pretty fast for a 7 year old, Itachi managed to run past him with ease. While running, Sasuke stumbled on his own feet, but recovered quickly thanks to Itachi's back as support, causing the elder to slow down.

Sasuke was now in front of Itachi, and was nearing the end of the hall where the kitchen was. Itachi was catching up fast, so Sasuke tried to run faster. He was about to turn into the kitchen, when he realized he had too much momentum, and was about to run right into the wall!

Before Sasuke could go face first into the wall, two hands caught him from behind, and pulled him into a hug.

"Careful, otouto." Itachi said, holding his brother just inches away from the wall.

Sasuke looked at the wall, then up at his brother with a big smile and said "I win."

Itachi smiled down at Sasuke and kissed him on the forehead.

"Almost smacking into a wall doesn't count as winning, otouto." Itachi said playfully, as he walked into the kitchen.

Sasuke's cheeks flushed as he pouted, following Itachi inside the kitchen.

Itachi chuckled at his otouto's expression as both of them sat at the table and had a nice family dinner.

* * *

After dinner, Itachi and Sasuke headed towards Sasuke's room, with Sasuke chattering away happily about his day and Itachi trying his best to listen. As much as he hated to admit it, the exhaustion from Itachi's mission was finally catching up with him, but he fought on, wanting to spend more time with his baby brother.

When they got to Sasuke's room, Itachi sat on the floor listening to Sasuke talk, while Sasuke blabbered on as he started cleaning the paper and crayons that were on the floor.

When Sasuke put away the last of his crayons, he finally asked "So nii-san, what do you want to do now?"

When he didn't get a response, Sasuke turned around and found Itachi leaned up on his bed, fast asleep.

Sasuke smiled at his brother. He knew his nii-san must be tired from his mission and didn't want to wake him. He already had fun with him today and was happy he could be with him.

Sasuke got a blanket from his bed and snuggled up with his brother. Kissing Itachi on the cheek, Sasuke covered both of them with the blanket and put his arms around Itachi. Slowly, he too began drifting off.

At times like these, Sasuke was just happy he could be with is nii-san.

* * *

First chapter done! Sorry this isn't the best story, I wasn't sure how to start off this story. I'll do my best to update this as much as I can! Thanks for reading!

Definitions:

Nii-san: Big brother

Aniki: Older brother

Otouto: Younger brother

Kaa-san: Mom

Tou-san: Dad

Hai: Yes

Please Review!


	2. Chapter 2

AN: I'm back with another chapter! Enjoy!

Itachi: age 12

Sasuke: age 6

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

* * *

 _Blood. There was blood everywhere._

 _The gruesome liquid was everywhere he looked, along with it were limp, lifeless bodies._

 _Sasuke looked at the morbid massacre that laid before him with large terrified eyes. He didn't know what was happening or why he was here._

 _He desperately looked around for anyone who was still alive, anyone who could help him. All he wanted was for someone to take him back to his family where he could be safe and sound._

 _His wish suddenly disappeared when he saw two shinobi fighting in the distance. One of them seeming oddly familiar._

 _Was that Itachi?_

 _The child's eyes lit up with joy and relief as he saw his big brother in the distance._

" _Aniki!" Sasuke yelled out as he started running towards the Uchiha prodigy._

 _He couldn't even begin to explain the solace he felt finding Itachi in this bloodbath. This nightmare will be over soon._

 _Sasuke was just about to reach his brother when he saw the other shinobi impale him with a katana._

 _Sasuke's eyes widened in horror as he witnessed the atrocious scene play in front of him._

 _They stayed frozen for a second until Itachi coughed out blood. The shinobi then brutally ripped his sword out of the prodigy's chest._

" _ITA-NII! NO!" The young Uchiha screamed as he rushed towards his brother's now limp body._

 _Sasuke fell on his knees as his body shook with violent sobs._

" _Nii-san, n-n-no! P-please a-aniki, g-get up." The child pleaded. "D-d-don't l-leave me I-Ita-nii! P-p-please d-don't leave m-me a-a-alone!"_

 _Sasuke suddenly looked up as he heard the familiar sound of a swinging sword, and then, nothing._

* * *

Sasuke suddenly jolted awake, finding himself falling and hitting his head on the floor.

"Ow…" Sasuke groaned.

He sat up as tears continued to stream down his face. The young Uchiha's breathing was shallow and it felt as though his heart would burst out of his chest at any moment.

He stayed there for a moment and tried to forget the horrible nightmare he had just encountered, but the more he thought about it, the harder he cried. All he could think about was his brother's limp body in his arms and how his nii-san would've been gone forever.

Sasuke stood up as the urge to see his older brother overwhelmed him and rushed out of his room.

* * *

Sasuke carefully slid open Itachi's bedroom door and stepped inside, closing it silently behind him.

"Nii-san?" Sasuke called out in a quiet, trembling voice.

Itachi stirred and sat up. He rubbed his eyes and looked in Sasuke's direction.

"Sasuke? Otouto, what are you-" Itachi stopped mid sentence when he saw tears racing down his baby brother's face.

He frowned.

"Otouto, what's wrong?" Itachi asked concerned.

"Ita-nii..." Sasuke said brokenly, as sobs began to consume him.

The prodigy felt his heart twist in pain. He couldn't stand seeing his little brother like this. Itachi got out of bed and reached out for his brother. Sasuke didn't waste a second to get into his aniki's arms.

The little raven desperately held on to his brother as his little body shook with sobs. "Shhh, it's ok otouto, I'm here." Itachi soothed as he picked the child up and laid down with him.

Sasuke continued to sob against his brother's chest. Itachi started comforting him by rubbing circles on his back, and saying comforting things to him.

"Don't cry Sasuke, I'm here." Itachi said gently as he ran a hand through Sasuke's raven black hair.

The older Uchiha managed to calm his brother down as he held him in a protective embrace with the younger hugging him back just as tight.

"Otouto?"

"Hmm?"

"What was that thud I heard from your room?" Itachi asked curiously.

Sasuke's cheeks heated.

"I fell." he answered.

"You fell?"

"Yeah, I fell off my bed and hit my head." Sasuke said, a hint of embarrassment in his voice.

Itachi chuckled slightly at his brother's clumsiness.

"Is that what's bothering you otouto?" Itachi asked as he unconsciously brought a hand to his brother's head to check for injuries, fortunately there were none.

"No," Sasuke said quietly."I had a nightmare."

"Do you want to talk about it?" Itachi offered as he rubbed the back of his brother's head soothingly..

There was a moment of silence before Sasuke answered.

"I was all alone and there were so many dead bodies everywhere. I didn't know what to do, and then I saw you, nii-san. You were fighting with another shinobi and then you-" Sasuke paused choking on his own words. "You-you d-died and y-you left m-me a-all alone!"

Tears went down Sasuke's face again as he sobbed in his brother's chest and desperately held on tighter.

"P-please don't l-leave me Ita-nii!"

Itachi's chest ached terribly as he watched his brother breakdown in tears again.

"Shhh, don't worry otouto, I'm right here." Itachi said as he rubbed comforting circles on his baby brother's back. "I'm not going anywhere. I promise I will never leave you."

Sasuke sniffed.

"You promise?" Sasuke asked looking up at his brother with big watery, red rimmed, obsidian eyes.

"I promise." Itachi replied, wiping away Sasuke's tears with his thumb. "I won't die that easily."

Itachi continued rubbing his brother's back in attempt to help him go back to sleep as Sasuke laid his head on his chest.

"Aniki?"

Itachi smiled.

"Hmm?"

"I love you." Sasuke said, wearily.

Itachi instinctively held Sasuke tighter and kissed the top of his head.

"I love you too, otouto"

* * *

AN: Second chapter, done! I don't know how many chapters this story will have because I LOVE the Uchiha brothers soooo much and I have a ton of ideas for more chapters!

Please review!


	3. Chapter 3

AN: I've been coming up with a bunch of ideas for chapters and I have been writing non-stop! This chapter is AU, where the massacre never happened. Anyways, here's another chapter!

Itachi: age 13

Sasuke: age 7

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

* * *

It was a lovely morning in Konoha. The sun danced and the weather was perfect.

Sasuke was still in bed, fast asleep. Itachi had come home from a mission last night and told Sasuke that he had two days off, meaning he had two days to spend time with his nii-san!

Itachi had been on missions non-stop lately and barely gets to spend time with Sasuke anymore. So Sasuke was really looking forward to spending time with his big brother.

Sasuke began to slowly open his eyes, his eyelids feeling unusually heavy. He sat up, putting a lot more effort into the action than he normally would and watched as the room started to spin.

His head throbbed and it felt as though his face had just come out of an oven.

Sasuke clutched his head.

 _No, no, no! I can't be sick!_ Sasuke thought. _These are the only two days I get with nii-san before he goes back on missions again! Maybe I'm tired and I just need to shake it off._

Shaking his head slightly, Sasuke got out of bed. A shiver went through his body and he had a hard time focusing on his surroundings, but he refused to accept that he was sick.

The little Uchiha walked out of his room, ignoring his pounding head, and headed towards the bathroom. On his way there, he bumped into someone.

"Good morning, otouto." Itachi greeted, as he wrapped his arms around Sasuke.

Sasuke wrapped his arms around his brother as well, returning the hug, and in the best, non-sick voice he could muster up, he said, "Good morning, nii-san." Then nuzzled his face in his brother's warm chest.

The older Uchiha slightly frowned as he felt an alarming amount of heat radiating off his brother.

"Are you ok, Sasuke?" Itachi asked. "You feel awfully warm."

Sasuke froze. He didn't want Itachi to know he was sick or else he would bedridden all day, meaning he couldn't spend time with him.

Sasuke quickly released the embrace.

"I'm fine. It was really warm under my blankets, that's all."

Itachi eyed him suspiciously.

"Are you sure?"

Sasuke nodded.

"Ok…" Itachi said, doubt in his voice. "Breakfast is ready, I was just about to get you."

The thought of breakfast made Sasuke's stomach lurch. He really didn't want to eat, but it would make him look suspicious if he didn't.

"Ok, I was about to brush my teeth,." Sasuke said. "I'll be there in a sec."

"Alright." Itachi nodded, uncertainty still in his voice.

With that, Sasuke headed towards the bathroom.

* * *

Once Sasuke was done brushing his teeth, he walked out of the bathroom and headed towards the kitchen, somehow feeling a bit better.

 _Good,_ he thought. _Maybe this is just a temporary thing and I should feel better by the time I get home from the academy._

Sasuke walked into the kitchen finding his brother sitting at the table with two plates of food in front of him. Looking at food made Sasuke remember how nauseous he felt at the thought of eating.

Sasuke entered the kitchen, looking around for his mother and father.

"Where's kaa-san and tou-san?" Sasuke asked

"They're out doing errands, but they should be back before you get home." Itachi answered, looking up at Sasuke.

Sasuke sat across from Itachi and looked down at the food in front of him. He took his chopsticks and hesitantly took a bite from his plate. It tasted good, but his stomach thought otherwise.

Sasuke put down his chopsticks, looked up at his brother.

"Can we play together when I get home, nii-san?"

"Sure, otouto. What do you want to do?" Itachi asked.

Sasuke thought for a moment.

"Can we do some shuriken training, nii-san? Oh! And maybe we can play tag after!" Sasuke said eagerly.

Itachi smiled

"Okay otouto, if that's what you want to do." Itachi replied

Sasuke smiled and checked the time. His eyes widened as he realized how late it was.

"Ah! It's already that late? I still have to change." Sasuke said, as he ran out of the kitchen.

Itachi chuckled at his brother, he was so cute!

He then looked at Sasuke's plate and frowned. Sasuke barely ate anything. Itachi felt a twinge of worry shoot through him, his brother usually ate everything on his plate.

* * *

When Sasuke got to his room, he flung off his t-shirt and shorts he wore to bed and started looking for clothes to wear. Suddenly, a wave of dizziness washed over Sasuke and he felt like he was going to pass out. He quickly sat down on his bed and waited for the dizziness to go away.

The little Uchiha then heard a quiet knock on his door.

"Sasuke? Otouto, your going to be late if you don't leave soon." Itachi said through the door.

Silence.

"Otouto?" Itachi tried again.

When he still didn't get an answer, Itachi slid the door open and found Sasuke, who was barely dressed, sitting on his bed, staring at nothing in particular.

"Sasuke, are you ok?" Itachi asked concerned "You don't have to go to the academy if you don't feel well. You look a bit sick."

"Huh? Oh, I'm fine, I just couldn't find anything to wear." Sasuke lied, as he forced a sheepish grin on his face.

"Are you sure?" Itachi asked, not totally convinced.

Sasuke nodded and continued to get dressed as Itachi left his room still feeling worried.

When Sasuke finished getting dressed, he ran out of his room and put his shoes on.

Itachi came out of the kitchen and gave Sasuke a hug.

"Have a good day at school, otouto." Itachi said as he released the hug, ruffling Sasuke's hair.

"Thanks, nii-san. See ya later!" Sasuke waved as he left the house, completely missing the worried glance his brother gave him.

All that rushing made Sasuke feel even worse than he had when he woke up. His head pounded, he felt really drowsy, and he was freezing, even though it was warm outside. But he especially felt bad for lying to his nii-san.

Dazed, the young Uchiha made his way to the academy.

* * *

A couple of hours passed by and school was finally over for the day.

Sasuke was trudging his way home, feeling worse than ever. His head was pounding in his ears, he felt really cold, and really weak. He couldn't focus on anything while he was at the academy because of his terrible headache.

Sasuke finally got home and tried his best to act normal.

"I'm home." Sasuke called out, while he was taking off his shoes.

His mom walked out of the kitchen to greet him.

"Welcome home, honey. How was your day?" she asked.

"It was good." Sasuke replied "Do you know where nii-san is, kaa-san?"

"He should be in his room." she answered, as she walked back into the kitchen.

Sasuke dragged himself to bedroom where he could change in a long sleeved shirt, he was freezing!

Once he was done changing, Sasuke flopped onto his bed, not wanting to get up, but also wanting to go find Itachi so they can play together.

Sasuke about to get up when he felt the bed dip and hand ruffle his hair.

"Tired, otouto?" Itachi asked, amused.

Sasuke immediately sat up and looked at his brother.

"Oh, hi nii-san. I was just about to look for you." Sasuke said. "Wanna go play now?"

"Sure, otouto." Itachi replied with a smile.

As Itachi looked at his brother, he noticed how red Sasuke's cheeks were and became worried again, remembering how strange his otouto was acting this morning.

"Are you ok, Sasuke? Your cheeks look really red." Itachi asked concerned as he reached out to feel his brother's crimson cheek.

Sasuke froze for a second, but caught Itachi's hand before it could make contact with his burning face, putting the large hand in his little ones.

"Uh, yeah, I'm fine nii-san." Sasuke lied.

"Come on, let's go!" Sasuke said pulling his brother out of the room.

Itachi reluctantly followed his brother, not really convinced his otouto was really okay.

* * *

The two brothers walked to the Uchiha clan's private training grounds to practice shuriken throwing.

When they got to the training grounds, Sasuke sat down under a tree feeling very light headed all of a sudden.

"Do you want to try first, otouto?" Itachi asked

Sasuke shook his head.

"You can go first, nii-san." Sasuke said, rather wearily.

Itachi frowned. Sasuke was usually very eager to do things like this and would jump on the opportunity to go first, but today was different, which made Itachi worry even more.

"Alright….." Itachi answered reluctantly.

Itachi turned around, having his back facing the targets and activated his sharingan. He had three shurikens in each hand and threw each of them directly behind him, all of them hitting the middle of the target.

He then jumped up, spinning in mid air and threw four more shurikens, hitting the rest of the targets perfectly.

Sasuke was trying his best to focus on what his nii-san was doing, but failed as a new found headache took over.

Itachi finished and looked over at Sasuke who was looking at nothing in particular.

Realizing his brother had finished and was now looking at him, Sasuke came out of his daze and forced a smile. "Wow! That was so cool, Ita-nii!" Sasuke said.

Sasuke got up and walked over to Itachi.

"Ok otouto, your turn. Be careful." Itachi said, as he stepped back to give his brother some space.

Sasuke walked over to a target and prepared to throw his shurikens. He was about to throw one, but abruptly stopped when everything around him started to spin and the feeling of passing out overwhelmed him.

He stumbled to the ground, but felt two strong hands catch him before he could hit the floor.

"Sasuke! You're burning up, otouto!" Itachi said extremely worried, as he felt a dangerous amount of heat coming off of Sasuke.

Before Sasuke could say anything, he lost consciousness.

* * *

When Sasuke regained consciousness, he found himself in his room with a wet towel across his forehead, and was met with onyx eyes that were very similar to his own staring back at him.

"Nii-san?"

"Sasuke, how are you feeling otouto?" Itachi asked, sounding worried.

"I feel a bit better." Sasuke answered, attempting sit up. Itachi put a hand on his brother's chest to prevent him doing so and gently pushed him back down.

"You need to rest otouto," Itachi said as he felt Sasuke's cheek and frowned at the heat. There was moment of silence before the older Uchiha asked a question that made Sasuke flinch.

"Sasuke, why didn't you tell me you weren't feeling well?"

Itachi's tone was slightly reprimanding, but still gentle. Unlike his father, the older Uchiha was never one who would chastise others, especially his dear baby brother.

Sasuke averted his gaze. "I…." he bagan, trying to find the right words.

"I..don't know," he finally managed to say quietly. "It's just that, these were the only two days you had off before you go back on missions and I wanted to spend as much time as I could with you. If I was sick, I would be stuck in bed and then we wouldn't be able to do anything together."

Itachi heard his heart snap in two.

His baby brother acted like he wasn't sick just so he could spend time with him. Some older brother he was, he had neglected Sasuke so much that his little brother felt the need to lie about how he was feeling, just to spend time with him.

Itachi pulled Sasuke into a hug.

"Sasuke, please don't ever think you're obligated to lie just so you can spend time with me otouto, especially about being sick. It's my fault, I've been going on too many missions lately." Itachi said, tightening his hold around Sasuke.

Sasuke hugged him back.

"I'm sorry nii-san, I just miss you," Sasuke replied. "Besides, I know it's your job to protect the village."

 _Not entirely true…._ Itachi thought, but quickly pushed it away.

"I miss you too otouto, but it's also my job to be your older brother." Itachi said. "From now on, I promise I'll try my best to spend as much time as I can with you, even if it means taking fewer missions."

Sasuke looked up at his brother in shock.

"Really, nii-san?" Sasuke asked

Itachi nodded

"Are you sure?" Sasuke asked again

Itachi nodded again

"But won't tou-san get mad?"

"Sasuke, do you want me to be here with you more often?" Itachi asked.

Sasuke nodded instantly.

"Then I will." Itachi said gently, as he kissed the top of Sasuke's head.

The two of them stayed like that for a while, before they both fell asleep in each others arms. Itachi wrapped his arms protectively around Sasuke, while Sasuke hugged him back, seeking comfort.

The bond between them was truly unbreakable.

* * *

AN: Whew! This was a super long chapter! But I finished it! Stay tuned for more chapters! Happy Easter!

Please Review!


	4. Chapter 4

AN: Wow! Two chapters in one day! I'm on a roll! I guess this could be a little easter present for you guys. Enjoy!

Itachi: age 10

Sasuke: age 4

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

* * *

It was a warm, sunny day out and Itachi and Sasuke were playing a nice game of hide and seek in their backyard.

Sasuke was looking around for his brother, not having a single clue where he could be hiding. The young Uchiha often had trouble finding his brother when he was the seeker, but Itachi always manages to find him so easily. However, Sasuke didn't care. He was just happy he could play with his nii-san today.

Sasuke wandered around their whole backyard, but he still couldn't find Itachi.

Little did Sasuke know, Itachi was hiding in a bush right behind him. The older Uchiha observed his baby brother search their backyard with no luck of finding him. Once he heard a tiny annoyed grunt emerge from his brother, Itachi decided to give his otouto a chance by ever so slightly shaking the bush.

Sasuke's head perked up when he heard a slight rustle from the bush behind him, causing him to race towards it. He looked through the bush to find Itachi crouched down behind it.

"Found you, Ita-nii!" the four year old said happily.

Itachi rewarded his brother with a smile. "Good job otouto! I'm impressed that you noticed me."

Sasuke smiled back, his cheeks a soft rosy colour. "Your turn to find me now, nii-san!"

Itachi nodded as Sasuke ran off. The Uchiha prodigy had only begun counting when his mother walked outside.

"Itachi, dinner is ready. Could you get Sasuke and come inside?" Mikoto asked, drying her hands on her apron.

"Hai, kaa-san" Itachi answered, as he ran off to find Sasuke.

Sasuke was hiding behind a tree, trying his best to stay quiet.

Hiding behind a tree doesn't seem like a good hiding spot, but their backyard was huge. It was covered with trees, almost like a forest, and it kept you out of sight until the seeker was in the general area you're in.

Sasuke looked behind the tree, checking to see if Itachi was coming. Luckily, he didn't see him. He turned back around and found Itachi standing in front of him with an amused smile on his face.

Sasuke gasped in surprise.

"Found you otouto." Itachi said amusement in his voice.

Sasuke pouted. "Awwe, you always find me so easily, nii-san."

Itachi chuckled. How did his brother always manage to be so cute?

"Better luck next time, otouto." Itachi said. "Come on, we have to go now. Dinner is ready."

"Already? I was having so much fun." Sasuke complained.

"Sorry otouto. We can play another time." Itachi said, poking Sasuke's forehead. "Let's go, kaa-san is waiting."

Sasuke rubbed the abused spot as he started walking towards their house, Itachi following behind him.

* * *

After dinner, Mikoto asked Itachi to help Sasuke get ready for bed while she cleaned. The prodigy obediently did as he was told and brought his younger brother to the bathroom.

The older Uchiha helped his brother take a quick bath and brush his teeth. Sasuke prattled on about anything that came to the top of his head as Itachi listened, glad he got to spend some time with his brother.

Once they finished up in the bathroom, they headed towards Sasuke's room so Itachi could help the little Uchiha get into his pajamas.

When Sasuke was finally ready for bed, Itachi tucked Sasuke in and placed a gentle kiss on his forehead.

Sasuke looked up at his brother with tired eyes.

"Nii-san?"

"Yes, Sasuke?" Itachi replied

"Can you tell me a story?" Sasuke asked.

Itachi smiled at Sasuke.

"Sure otouto." Itachi answered.

Itachi laid down beside Sasuke and pulled him in a hug. He began running his fingers through Sasuke's soft black hair as he began telling a story about a courageous ninja who saved the world from destruction and bringing about everlasting peace.

During the middle of his story, Itachi heard soft, deep breaths emanating from his brother.

He looked down to find Sasuke fast asleep.

Itachi smiled as he looked at his brother's adorable face as he slept soundly. His lips were slightly parted as deep breaths came in and out.

Itachi kissed the top of Sasuke's head.

"Sweet dreams, otouto"

* * *

AN: Sorry this was a short story. I got this cute idea in my head and I wanted to write about it. They are so freaking cute!

Please review!


	5. Chapter 5

AN: Here's another chapter for you guys!

Itachi: age 13

Sasuke: age 7

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

* * *

"Okay Sasuke, if anything bad happens just go over to the neighbours house and they'll take care of you. Itachi will be home a few hours after you get back from the academy. He'll look after you while we're gone." Mikoto said rather stressfully

"Hai, kaa-san. You told me this last night." Sasuke replied.

Mikoto and Fugaku were going on a three day mission to the land of Rice Patties, and Mikoto was worried about leaving her youngest son.

Normally she would be fine leaving Sasuke alone with Itachi, but the older Uchiha was coming home from a mission later in the evening. This meant Sasuke would be alone for a couple of hours before Itachi gets home.

This would be the first time Sasuke would be left home alone while everyone was some ways away from the village. This concerned Mikoto even though the young Uchiha would be alone for only a couple of hours.

"Don't worry, I'll be fine, kaa-san." Sasuke reassured with an innocent smile.

Mikoto couldn't help but smile back at her son.

"Alright. Have a good day at the academy. Be good for your brother and I'll see you when we get back. I love you." Mikoto said, kissing Sasuke on the cheek.

"Love you too, kaa-san! See ya later!" Sasuke called back as he ran out the door.

Excitement swelled in the young Uchiha's chest as the made his way to the academy. He was looking forward to the next three days he was going to spend with Itachi.

* * *

School finally ended for the day and Sasuke was walking back home with a smile plastered on his face.

He finally arrived at his house and started taking off his shoes.

"I'm home." Sasuke called out and right after the words had left his mouth, he remembered that nobody was home.

Sasuke looked around the house.

It was so _quiet._

He's been home alone before, but knowing that all of his family was at least a few hours away from the village made him feel somewhat unsettled.

Pushing down the feeling, the young Uchiha made his way to his room and began doing some homework.

* * *

Sasuke was well into his work when he heard hushed whistling coming from outside.

Curious, he looked out the window and realized it was raining.

That's odd, it had been such a beautiful day out. But not thinking much of it, the little Uchiha shrugged and went back to work.

It wasn't until the young raven was just about finished his homework when he heard a crash of thunder. His soul nearly left his body as he jumped at the sudden sound that echoed through his vacant home.

He looked down at his homework and frowned. A huge pencil mark had ripped across the page due to his sudden jolt. Sasuke then glanced at his window with big, frightened eyes. Lightning illuminated the sky as crashing thunder followed, causing the child to flinch violently.

The little Uchiha's face went pale as he began trembling, his heart beating out of his chest.

Sasuke had always been afraid of thunderstorms. Smaller thunderstorms didn't him scare as much. The really big ones, however, were the ones that terrified him the most. It was his family that helped him pull through many storms like this in the past, especially Itachi.

Except, Itachi wasn't home. No one was.

Sasuke felt panic rising in his chest. His mind raced for he didn't know what to do. His mother told him to go to the neighbours house if anything was wrong, but he couldn't go outside! If he went outside, he would get caught in the storm.

The young Uchiha stood up from his seat as he tried to sort out his thoughts. However, lightning lit up the room once again with a loud boom, causing Sasuke to jump as tears started racing down his face.

 _Stay calm, stay calm._ Sasuke thought as he wiped away his tears. _Itachi should be home soon and everything will be alright._

Itachi…

Itachi was outside in the storm.

Sasuke's body started to shake as fear gripped his heart tightly. What if Itachi doesn't make it back?

There was no use trying to wipe away the tears coming down the child's face for he couldn't control them any longer.

His aniki _has_ to come home. The thought of never seeing his precious older brother again was unbearable.

But words continued playing around in Sasuke's mind. _Itachi's not coming. He'll never make it back home. You'll never see him again. This storm will lead to his_ death _._

The little Uchiha clutched his chest as he sank to his knees.

Thunder rumbled through the empty house, along with an ear piercing scream.

* * *

Meanwhile, Itachi was on his way home from his mission. His mission was to track down and eliminate enemies who stole a secret missive from the Hokage. This was an easy mission for Itachi and his team. It took them only about a day to track down the enemy and eliminate them, and it took another full day to return back.

Itachi was just a little ways away from the village when it started to rain. There was a vague nagging feeling in the back of Itachi's mind, telling him that there was something wrong. However, he didn't pay much attention to it and headed to the Hokage's office to return the missive and give him a report.

The prodigy stayed at the Hokage estate for about an hour, giving a full report on what happened during the mission.

Once everything was wrapped up, Itachi headed home. He was eager to get rid of the blood on his body and to see his otouto. After assassinating a bunch of ninja, being around Sasuke's pure innocence and joy was what the older Uchiha truly needed.

When the prodigy stepped out of the building, he realized it had begun thunderstorming.

Itachi frowned.

The nagging feeling from before came back as he looked up at the sky. A jolt of worry shot through the Uchiha as he thought of his brother. _I hope Sasuke is okay…_

The nagging feeling grew stronger as he began walking.

 _Sasuke should be back from the academy by now. He'll be fine at home with-_

Itachi's heart dropped as he finally realized what was bothering him.

No one is with Sasuke. He's home alone.

An uneasy feeling began creeping up inside the prodigy as he made his way to his house at full speed. Itachi knew his brother, and he knew him well. Sasuke is terrified of thunderstorms. He could only imagine what his poor brother was doing right now.

The older Uchiha arrived at his house in a flash and burst through the door. He swiftly took off his shoes and began searching the house.

"Sasuke?" Itachi called out.

No answer.

The worry in his chest grew.

"Otouto?" Itachi called out again.

The older Uchiha headed towards Sasuke's room and slid the shoji door open.

Inside, Itachi saw homework on his brother's desk, but no Sasuke. He walked further into the room.

"Sasuke?" Itachi called out once again.

As he moved farther into the room, the prodigy's trained ears pricked up as he heard faint sobbing and sniffling.

He turned towards the source of the sound and realized it was coming from the closet. The older Uchiha didn't waste a second before opening the closet doors.

A crushing feeling erupted in the prodigy's chest as he witnessed what was in front of him.

His poor baby brother was pressed up against the wall as he desperately hugged his knees to his chest. The child didn't dare look up as sobs racked his little body.

Another boom went through the air causing the little Uchiha to jump and allow a small whimper to escape his lips. Itachi's heart ached horribly.

"Otouto…" the older Uchiha said as he kneeled down in front of his sibling.

Sasuke's sobbing abruptly stopped with a small gasp as he reluctantly looked up.

"Ita-nii?" Sasuke whispered as looked up at his brother, tears spilling down his small face.

Itachi reached out for his little brother who rushed into his arms.

"Nii-san! _Ita-nii!_ " Sasuke cried.

The poor child's body shook with fear as he desperately gripped on to his big brother.

"I know, I know. Don't worry, I'm here now." Itachi comforted as he held his distraught brother in his arms.

The older Uchiha placed a hand behind the younger's head who continued sobbing miserably.

"I-Ita-nii…" Sasuke sobbed out brokenly as he hugged his brother tighter.

Itachi rubbed his back soothingly.

"It's ok, you're ok. I'm here now, otouto. Don't worry." The elder said gently. "I won't leave you, I promise."

Sasuke nodded against his brother as his violent sobbing continued.

* * *

It was a long while before Itachi managed to calm Sasuke down. The young Uchiha's sobs had stopped, but some tears still ran down his pale face. The prodigy could still feel his brother's ragged breaths as he still held him close.

Itachi glanced out the window. The thunderstorm continued to rage through the village and it didn't look like it would stop any time soon. He then glanced down at the both of them only to realize his uniform was soaking wet. The older raven hadn't noticed since he had been so worried about Sasuke.

"Otouto?" Itachi said as he looked down at his brother's face.

"Hmm?" Sasuke hummed out rather wearily.

"I still need to change out of my uniform." Itachi replied gently. "I'm getting you all wet."

And as if on cue, the sound of thunder exploded in the air causing the young Uchiha jump and tighten his grip around his brother. Tears squeezed past closed eyelids as Sasuke buried his face into his brother's shoulder even more.

"No Ita-nii! Don't leave me!" Sasuke cried out.

The elder instinctively held his sibling closer to his body.

"Shhh, it's ok Sasuke. I won't leave you." Itachi comforted as he rubbed his brother's back.

Having no other choice, the older Uchiha sighed inwardly as he picked up his brother and walked over to his room.

He made his way to his bed as soon as he entered his room and tried placing Sasuke down, but he refused to let go.

Itachi looked at his brother and wiped away the tears that were still running down his face.

"Don't worry otouto. I'll be right here, I promise." Itachi said as he rubbed Sasuke's back reassuringly. "I just need to change out of my uniform, that's all."

Sasuke stared at his brother with large, scared eyes for a moment before hesitantly letting go.

Itachi smiled warmly at his little brother as he placed him on the bed. He kissed Sasuke's head then proceeded to get changed.

The elder finished in a flash and looked over at his brother who had brought his knees up to his chest. And although Sasuke's bangs covered his little face, Itachi could still see the tears streaking his cheeks.

The older Uchiha stared at his baby brother sympathetically as he made his way towards the bed.

Itachi reached out for his sibling and held him in his arms as he kissed his temple.

"Stop crying otouto," Itachi said gently as he wiped away Sasuke's tears with his thumb. "I'm here with you."

Sasuke wiped at his eyes. "I thought you weren't coming back." He mumbled. "That's what scared me the most."

Itachi rested his cheek on his brother's head and gave him a gentle squeeze. "I'm sorry I scared you otouto."

"It's not your fault nii-san, but I'm glad you're here." the young Uchiha replied. "I hate thunderstorms."

Itachi chuckled.

"I _know_ otouto," The older Uchiha said playfully as he poked Sasuke's sides unexpectedly.

A small yelp came out of the little raven's mouth as he squirmed under his brother's grasp.

He looked up at his brother as a smile crept onto his features. "Hey, no fair. I'm scared and sad, you can't tickle me."

The prodigy laughed. "At least I got you to smile."

Sasuke instantly changed his smile into a pout once he realized he was smiling and leaned up against his brother who simply chuckled.

They stayed silent for a while as they basked in each other's presence. The thunderstorm still continued causing the little Uchiha to jump every now and then, but Itachi was there to help him get through it.

"Thank you Ita-nii." Sasuke murmured as his eyelids began slipping closed. After all that crying, the poor child must have cried himself to exhaustion. And although his small sentence of gratitude was quiet, the elder had heard him loud and clear.

Itachi smiled as he kissed his baby brother's head. "Anytime otouto, anytime."

* * *

AN: This one was a long one! But I loved writing it, so much fluff! Sorry if the ending wasn't the best, I couldn't really think of anything. But I hope you enjoyed!

Please Review!


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

AN: This is another AU where the massacre never happened. Enjoy!

Itachi: age 18

Sasuke: age 12

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

* * *

It was a beautiful day in Konoha and Itachi was on his way home from a three day mission.

His body ached as he was itching to get rid of the blood that stained his tired frame. What he really wanted now was a nice shower followed by a good nap.

The prodigy stepped into his house and slipped off his shoes.

"I'm home." he called out as he neatly placed his shoes beside the door.

No reply.

Itachi frowned. His family usually greets him when he comes home, especially Sasuke. And although he doesn't glomp Itachi when he gets home anymore, his little brother still gladly greets him.

As the prodigy headed towards his room, he quickly recalled that his parents were away for a very important meeting and Sasuke was on a mission with his genin team.

Itachi smiled fondly.

He still couldn't believe his otouto was already a genin. It seemed like only yesterday Sasuke was just a tiny little baby. Pretty soon he'll be going on missions like his own…

The older Uchiha felt a bit repulsed by the thought as he proceeded to take off his uniform and head to the bathroom for that long awaited shower.

By the time he was finished, exhaustion weighed down on the prodigy's shoulders as he laid down on his bed.

Itachi sighed contently as the comfiness of his bed surrounded him. After a long mission, a nap is what he truly needed.

Getting more comfortable, Itachi finally dozed off.

* * *

A couple hours had passed before Itachi woke up from his well deserved nap. He stepped out of his room, wondering if anyone had returned home.

It didn't take long for him to realize that he was still home alone. Not knowing what else to do, Itachi headed back to his room to write up his mission report for the Hokage.

Writing the report didn't take long however, it was a fairly straightforward mission. Itachi rolled up the scroll and headed towards the front door, planning to deliver his report to the Hokage.

As soon as the older Uchiha opened the door, something, or rather _someone,_ decided to collapse on him.

The prodigy's sharp reflexes allowed him to catch whoever had fallen, but upon contact he immediately knew it was Sasuke.

"Sasuke?" Itachi said slightly confused but more alarmed.

"N-nii-san…..?" Sasuke replied as he gripped onto his brother.

The older Uchiha was about to question his brother further before he felt a thin trail of liquid slither down his arm. He looked over to discover that it was blood.

Sasuke's blood.

Itachi's heart sunk as deep as it could go.

"Otouto you're bleeding," he said, concern clear in his voice. "What happened?"

"I.…I don't know….." Sasuke managed out.

Itachi sighed in disapproval, but before he could say anything, blood spewed out of Sasuke's mouth as he went into a violent coughing fit.

The prodigy's eyes widened in horror as he watched his baby brother's face twist in pain, blood rushing out of his system through wild coughs. Itachi got a cold feeling in the pit of his stomach. He barely ever felt this, but he knew it was pure fear.

Snapping out of his daze, the older Uchiha picked up his brother and went full speed towards the hospital.

* * *

Itachi burst through the hospital doors and immediately called out for help.

Medical nins swarmed around the two Uchiha as the older raven reluctantly handed his brother over to them. They rolled Sasuke away on a stretcher as Itachi was told to sit in the waiting room.

The Uchiha prodigy wanted to refuse and demand to follow wherever his little brother went, but decided against it as he slumped down on one of the seats.

Itachi ran his hand over his face as a swirl of emotions raged in his chest. It scared the prodigy to see his baby brother in pain like that. He has almost never seen Sasuke in that much pain before, just thinking about it made him sick.

But why did Sasuke wait? If he knew he was injured, why didn't he tell any of his teammates or at least head to the hospital himself? Itachi could not believe how _dense_ his little brother could be sometimes, especially towards himself. If he continues to be a hazard to himself, he might end up dead…

Itachi's blood turned to ice as fear gripped his heart.

That's what really scared him. Sasuke dying.

He knew it was unreasonable to think something like that, but there was always the possibility. Itachi could very well walk out of this hospital not having a little brother anymore, and that fact terrified him.

What would he do without Sasuke? His precious otouto? Ever since his little brother was born, Itachi loved him with all his heart. Sasuke always managed to make him smile and brighten his dark life. He would do _anything_ for his foolish baby brother. What the _hell_ would he do if he had to live without him?

"Itachi?"

Itachi was pulled out of his thoughts as he heard a familiar voice call his name. He looked up to see Shisui standing in front of him.

Shisui frowned as he took a better look at his best friend.

"Hey, what's wrong kiddo?" he asked as he took a seat beside Itachi.

Itachi glanced at his friend. "I'm 18 Shisui. I think I'm a little too old for you to be calling me 'kiddo'."

"Ah, but I _am_ older than you, so I get to call you whatever I want." the body flicker teased with a grin. "You'll always be a kid to me anyways."

Shisui was expecting at least a small smile from his friend, but the same grim expression stayed locked in place.

This wasn't good.

"What's wrong Itachi?" Shisui asked, his face serious. "Did something happen?"

"Sasuke came back from a mission injured," Itachi muttered. "Severely." he added.

Shisui nodded as everything started making sense. He knows how much Itachi cares about Sasuke, he must be taking this pretty hard.

"What happened?" he asked.

Itachi went on to explain what happened to his brother, his grim expression never leaving his face.

Shisui sighed.

"Hey, don't worry Itachi. Sasuke will be alright." he said, putting a hand on Itachi's back. "Just try not to overthink it."

"Too late," Itachi deadpanned.

Shisui grinned at his friend.

"Of course, why am I not surprised?" the body flicker said lightheartedly. "But Sasuke is strong. You of all people should know that. He will be okay."

Itachi looked at his friend gratefully. "Thank you, Shisui."

Shisui winked at his friend. "Anytime, kiddo."

"Excuse me. Are you Sasuke Uchiha's older brother?" A medical ninja asked.

Itachi stood up from his seat. "Yes. How is he?"

"He's alright now. We managed to stop both the internal and external bleeding. However, it was a close call." the medical nin said.

Itachi's blood stopped cold.

"Your brother was poisoned by a toxin that eats away at flesh." The medic nin informed "This toxin however, prevents the victim from noticing they've been poisoned until it has already eaten a moderate amount of flesh. The poison did a fair amount of damage to your brother's insides, but he should be healed in a few weeks. Good thing you got here when you did."

The older Uchiha stood there as thoughts rampaged through his head. If he had gotten here even a _minute_ later, Sasuke would be _dead_.

He wouldn't have a little brother anymore.

The very thought killed him inside.

Itachi was brought out of his thoughts as he felt a hand on his back.

"What did I tell ya?" Shisui said playfully as he sensed his cousins distress. "I knew the loser would be okay."

The prodigy couldn't help but feel some sort of reassurance from his cousin's statement. He's right. The important thing now is that Sasuke will be okay.

There's no point in dwelling on what could've happened, although Itachi still felt like his heart could stop at any moment...

"Would you like to see him now?" The medic nin asked.

The older Uchiha nodded as the medic nin began walking down the hall.

"Tell the brat I said get well." Shisui said with a grin.

Itachi smirked.

"Will do." He said as he followed the medic down the hall.

* * *

Itachi's eyes immediately fell on Sasuke's sleeping form as he entered the hospital room.

Seeing his brother in front of him caused a wave of protectiveness to wash over the older Uchiha. A strong urge to hold on to his brother and never let go overwhelmed him, as if he would disappear if he did.

Itachi took a seat beside Sasuke's bed as he carefully watched his baby brother's bandaged chest rise and fall.

He sighed as he reached out for brother's hand.

Nothing hurts him more than seeing his brother like this. All he wants to do is protect him, but there's always something in his way. The prodigy would go through _anything_ to prevent his little brother from any pain.

Watching his little brother almost die in front of him was unbearable.

Seeing the pain in his eyes and not being able to do anything to help caused a gut wrenching feeling to settle deep within the elder's soul.

His foolish little brother just meant _so_ much to him…

Itachi's attention snapped back to Sasuke as he felt his brother stir.

Sasuke winced as he slowly opened his eyes.

Relief flooded through the older Uchiha as he watched his brother's eyes focus on him.

"Nii-san?" Sasuke whispered hoarsely.

"Sasuke," Itachi replied, his voice full of emotion. "How are you feeling otouto?"

The elder reached out and began fondling his brother's hair.

The young Uchiha sighed. "I feel like I've been eviscerated or something." Sasuke looked at his brother, his eyes slightly wider. "I still have my stomach right?"

Itachi couldn't help the small smile that appeared on his face. His brother was just too cute.

"Yes Sasuke, you still have your stomach." he replied as he lightly poked it.

There was a brief moment of silence before the prodigy continued.

"You really scared me today otouto." he said quietly.

The young Uchiha's eyebrows went up slightly.

"Nii-san, scared? It must be the end of the world or something." Sasuke chuckled out weakly, immediately wincing in pain afterwards.

The young teen was expecting his brother to laugh with him or at least smile, but he didn't. Sasuke glanced at his brother and saw a grim expression on Itachi's face.

Sasuke frowned.

"Aniki? What's wrong?"

Itachi instinctively tightened his hold on his brother's hand.

"You could have died today, Sasuke." he replied, his voice devoid of any emotion. "I could have lost you otouto."

Sasuke stared at his brother dumbfounded. The thought of death scared him, but what really made him feel terrible was forcing his brother to go through what happened. He hates seeing his brother like his. He knew it must have been hell for Itachi, scaring him like that.

"Nii-san," Sasuke began. "I don't even know what happened. One minute I was fine, the next minute I was bleeding everywhere."

Even with Sasuke's lighthearted tone, Itachi still didn't budge.

The young Uchiha sighed inwardly.

"I'm sorry for worrying you like that nii-san," he said. "I had no idea it would turn out _this_ bad."

"It's not your fault." Itachi replied, his voice still distant.

There was a moment of silence. Sasuke watched as his older brother consumed himself in his own thoughts, probably thoughts about him. He isn't letting this go easy, huh?

Well of course he isn't, he's Itachi.

"Hey," Sasuke said as he poked his brother. Itachi fixed his gaze on the young Uchiha who was looking directly into his eyes. "I'm okay nii-san. I'm right here, still with you. Don't worry, I'm gonna be alright... please aniki."

The young Uchiha kept his gaze on his brother, hoping that he somehow managed to comfort him.

Not a moment passed before Itachi wrapped his arms around his brother and held him close, not wanting to let go anytime soon.

Sasuke nuzzled into his brother's embrace, enjoying the familiar warmth his brother always gave him.

"Otouto," Itachi said, his voice strained. "I love you so much."

The young Uchiha smiled.

"I love you too nii-san."

The older Uchiha subconsciously held his brother closer as he kissed his head.

"Sasuke?"

"Hmm?" The younger hummed out.

"Be more careful next time." replied the elder.

Sasuke sighed contently as he held on to his brother.

"I promise."

* * *

AN: Awwwwe! I love them! Did you notice I put Shisui in this chapter? I'm thinking of putting him in other chapters as well.

Please review!


	7. Chapter 7

AN: Hey guys, sorry it took awhile to make another chapter, school work go in the way! Anyway, here's another chapter! Enjoy!

Itachi: age 13

Sasuke: age 7

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

* * *

It was a sunny morning in Konoha and Sasuke was on his way to the academy with a slight pout upon his features. He didn't want to go to the academy today, or any other day for that matter. Which was kind of strange, considering how Sasuke actually enjoyed going to the academy.

No, he didn't feel sick, nor was he falling behind on his school work. The reason behind this was because he was being bullied.

Sure, he was popular with the girls, but there were a few other children who despised the young Uchiha.

The bullying wasn't too extreme. It usually came from a group of three boys. They would insult Sasuke, and make fun of him behind his back. Sasuke tried to brush it off, but the insults were getting to him.

When Sasuke arrived to the academy, he took a seat and prepared for the day ahead of him.

* * *

Shuriken training had just ended, and everyone was given 30 minutes of free time outside. The day has been good so far, none of the bullies have bothered him yet.

Sasuke gave a small smirk.

Maybe the bullies forgot about him and they-

"Hey, Uchiha!"

Sasuke frowned.

He knew who that voice belonged to. It was one of the bullies.

Sasuke turned around, glaring daggers at the boy in front of him.

"Why are you all alone, duckbutt? Are you having trouble making friends, you emo little bastard?" the boy jeered. "I don't get what anyone sees in you. Your just a pathetic wimp."

Sasuke became annoyed, he really wasn't in the mood to deal with this.

"Get lost, loser." Sasuke said, still glaring.

The smug look on the boy's face disappeared and was replaced by a look of anger.

"What did you just call me, brat?" the boy spat.

He suddenly launched a punch at Sasuke, who easily dodged and gave the boy a hard side kick to the stomach as a counterattack, causing him to fall over.

"Oww…." he said, glaring up at Sasuke.

Sasuke just nonchalantly put his hands in his pockets, and walked away with a smirk, pleased he got to teach his bully a lesson.

"I'll get you for that, Uchiha." the boy said, glaring at Sasuke's back. "I'll make sure I do."

* * *

The rest of the day went without a hitch. The bullies didn't bother Sasuke for the rest of the day, making Sasuke feel proud of himself.

The young raven was on his way home, with a big grin on his face. Itachi should be coming back from a mission today, and he couldn't wait to see him.

As he was walking home, Sasuke spotted the bully coming towards him.

Sasuke glared at him.

 _I thought I took care of him already._ Sasuke thought, angrily.

"Hey, Uchiha." the boy said with a sly grin on his face.

"What do you want?" Sasuke asked, annoyed.

"That kick you gave me really hurt. Now it's time to get even."

Sasuke narrowed his eyes.

"What do you mean?" Sasuke asked, skeptically. This kid would be no match for the young Uchiha.

"It's true I probably would have no chance against you alone…." the bully began. " But I wonder….. are you able to fight against all _three_ of us?"

Just then, two other boys came up behind Sasuke and grabbed him, dragging him to a forest where they couldn't be seen.

They threw Sasuke's bag on the ground and two of the boys restricted his movements and covered his mouth. Sasuke tried to break free from their hold, but their grip was too tight.

The seven year old scowled at the the leader who was in front of him. The boy then gave Sasuke a sharp kick to the stomach causing him to grunt out in pain.

The other boys laughed.

"How does that feel, Uchiha?" the leader taunted, kicking him again.

Sasuke tried his very hardest not to grunt out in pain, not to show weakness. But when he received a really hard punch in a very sensitive area, he couldn't help but cry out in pain, causing the boys to laugh.

Sasuke hated this. He hated how the bullies found such happiness in his suffering. He hated himself for being so weak, what would his family think of him?

He hated himself even more when he felt tears well up in his eyes. But he wouldn't let them fall, he wouldn't give in.

After awhile of harsh kicking and punching, they finally released Sasuke, making him fall to the ground.

The leader went up to Sasuke's face.

"If you tell anyone about this….I'll kill you." the boy threatened. After giving Sasuke one last kick to the stomach, the leader and his friends walked away laughing.

Sasuke laid there on the ground, feeling defeated. His body ached so much from all the the abuse he received, it felt as though he couldn't get up. A single tear rolled down his face and he cursed himself again for being so weak.

After lying there for a couple of minutes, Sasuke mustered up all the strength he had and got up. He gathered his stuff and limped his way back home.

* * *

Once he got home, Sasuke went straight to his room, not even bothering to announce that he came back. He was all dirty and probably covered with bruises.

All the feelings he had felt before hit him with a bang and he couldn't stop the tears that began to roll down his face. He couldn't believe what just happened. The more he thought about it, the harder he cried. He was so _weak_! So _pathetic_! He was probably the only Uchiha who couldn't save himself from a school bully.

No matter what, he couldn't let anyone know about this, especially his family. They would disown him if they found out. But he felt so lonely. This was way too much for him to handle. He needed someone to be there for him, to comfort him.

Itachi was the first one to come to mind.

Sasuke shook his head. Even if he did tell his brother, the death threat the bully gave sounded serious. So he decided to keep this to himself.

Dinnertime rolled around, and the Uchiha family was sitting around the table enjoying dinner. Itachi came home and was currently talking with his father about a mission.

Sasuke, on the other hand, had his eyes locked in his plate, not daring to look up. He was trying his hardest not to start balling his eyes out in front of everyone. Most of the pain from earlier had subsided, but there was this heart wrenching feeling in his chest that refused to go away. The little Uchiha did a good job of hiding his injuries with his clothing and hair, so no one noticed anything.

Sasuke was almost done eating when Itachi glanced over at him and realized he was awfully quiet and looked quite sad, making him concerned.

"Are you ok, Sasuke?" Itachi asked.

Sasuke froze. He could feel everyone's eyes on him and it made him uncomfortable. After a few seconds, making sure he wouldn't burst into tears, Sasuke answered.

"I'm fine…" He replied, in a small, sad voice.

Itachi wasn't convinced at all. He was about to say something else, when his father interrupted and started to talk to him again.

Sasuke quickly got up and put his dishes away before his brother got a chance to examine him. He started walking towards his room with his head down and bangs covering his face. As he left the kitchen, Sasuke felt the older Uchiha's worried stare drilling into him, but he didn't look back.

 _Otouto?_ Itachi thought, worriedly.

* * *

Two weeks had passed and same thing happened everyday after school. The bullies would beat the Uchiha up, and Sasuke would go home and lock himself in his room.

This gradually made Sasuke feel depressed and he couldn't get a goodnight's sleep due to the discomfort his injuries gave him.

Sasuke couldn't take it anymore, he needed to tell someone. He needed someone's help. After thinking long and hard, he decided he was going to tell Itachi, even if he would think poorly of him.

Although no one else noticed, Itachi knew something was wrong. His otouto hasn't been acting like himself lately and not knowing what the problem was drove him crazy. Sasuke usually told him everything.

Itachi was just about to head off to go train with is ANBU team, when Sasuke came up to him with his hands behind his back and his head tilted down.

Itachi noticed bags under his otouto's eyes and how pale he had become. He obviously hasn't been getting enough sleep.

"Hey, otouto." Itachi greeted.

"Hi nii-san. Are you busy today?" Sasuke asked in a small voice.

"I have to train with my team for most of the day and I won't be home till later." Itachi replied.

"Oh...then, nevermind." Sasuke said, about to walk away when Itachi stopped him.

"Wait, otouto." Itachi began. "You know you can tell me anything right?"

Sasuke nodded.

"Was there anything you needed?" Itachi asked, hoping Sasuke would open up to him. "Because I'm here if you need _anything_. It's my job as your older brother to be."

Sasuke hesitated.

"I was just wondering if we could….. talk." Sasuke answered, reluctantly.

Relief flooded through the prodigy's chest, this was just what he was looking for. But the relief soon disappeared when he realized the timing couldn't be any worse.

"I would love to talk, otouto, but I have training and you have to go to the academy. So how about we talk when I get back from training? You should be home by then."

"Ok, aniki." Sasuke answered.

Itachi smiled, it's been a while since Sasuke has called him aniki.

"Have a good day at the academy, otouto." Itachi said, ruffling Sasuke's hair.

With a final wave, he walked out the door.

* * *

Sasuke felt a little better knowing that he was going to tell Itachi about the bullying, meaning this nightmare would end soon.

Once class was dismissed, Sasuke rushed as fast as he could home, hoping the bullies wouldn't get to him.

Sasuke thought that he was off the hook, but he then felt himself being dragged into that same damn forest for what felt like the hundredth time that week.

Sasuke was violently thrown on the ground, making some of his old bruises hurt him.

He looked up and saw all the bullies towering over him.

"You didn't think you could get away from us now, did you?" the leader spoke up with a evil grin on his face, kicking Sasuke in the ribs.

Sasuke couldn't take this anymore. Sorely, he stood up and started attacking all the bullies.

One by one, he started attacking them with taijutsu that Itachi taught him. He was just about to win, when he felt an excruciating pain all over his right arm.

Sasuke fell to his knees, clutching his arm. He felt something wet and sticky coming from it. He soon realized it was blood gushing out from a wound.

 _Where did this come from?_ Sasuke thought, wincing at the pain.

He looked up to see the leader holding a kunai, stained with his blood.

"You're really stubborn, aren't you. That's what you get for being difficult." The leader said. "And there will be more where that came from."

Sasuke's eyes widened in fear.

The other boys who Sasuke attacked, got up from the ground and gripped onto him tightly. Sasuke received multiple strong hits, as well as some slashes from a kunai. He felt too weak and sore to struggle against them and he started feeling hazy.

All he could do now was hope someone would save him.

* * *

Itachi was on his way to his house from a hard training session. He was eager to get home so he can finally know what was bothering Sasuke.

When Itachi walked through the door, he expected Sasuke to jump on him, greeting him with a hug. He wasn't surprised when Sasuke didn't come. He's been acting really strange lately.

Anxious to help his brother return to his happy, cheerful self, Itachi headed to his room to change out of his uniform and search for Sasuke.

After changing, Itachi looked around for his brother, but he couldn't find him, which was strange. Sasuke should be home from the academy by now, it was almost dinner time.

Itachi decided to look in the kitchen. He was met with the sight of his mother finishing up dinner, but no Sasuke.

"Hi, kaa-san." Itachi greeted.

"Oh! Itachi! Thank goodness you're here. Sasuke hasn't returned home yet and I'm getting worried about him." Mikoto said, concern written on her face.

Itachi immediately became worried. It wasn't like Sasuke to come home late. What if something happened to him?

"I'll go look for him." Itachi said, heading towards the door.

Itachi rushed out the door and began searching for Sasuke. He checked the park and the academy, but he was nowhere to be seen. Itachi was extremely worried now. Where could Sasuke run off to?

Itachi began to search for his brother's chakra signature.

It was faint, but Itachi found it in a forest, along with three other chakra signatures. Itachi raced towards the forest, keeping his eyes locked on his destination.

When Itachi got there, he was met with a horrifying sight that stopped his blood cold.

Sasuke was on the ground, barely conscious, completely beaten up. What made it worse was that three boys were throwing punches and kicks at him as if he wasn't hurt enough.

Anger coursed through Itachi. He was furious. How _dare_ they hurt his otouto. Although Itachi hated violence, he wanted to slaughter every one of those boys.

In a flash, Itachi appeared in front of Sasuke with crimson eyes scowling at them, making every one of the boys take a step back in confusion. Another second later, all the boys were on the ground, moaning in pain.

Once his head cleared up a bit, Sasuke looked up and saw Itachi standing in front of him. Relief washed over him. He was about to call out to him, when he saw a grim, almost frightening look on Itachi's face. From the looks of it, Sasuke could tell his nii-san was extremely angry.

The leader managed to stand up again and glared at Itachi.

"What the hell are you doing!" the leader bellowed. "I swear, if that bastard snitched on us, I'll kill him!"

Hearing those words made something snap in the older Uchiha.

From where Sasuke was, Sasuke could feel the killing intent leaking out of Itachi, making him flinch. It took a lot to anger Itachi and Sasuke knew that if you crossed that line, you could be as good as dead.

Itachi flashed his sharingan at the boy, with a frightening look in his eyes. Suddenly, the leader was violently smacked against a tree with a firm grip around his neck. Itachi started punching the boy repeatedly.

Sasuke watched as his brother punched the boy non stop. He's never seen his aniki this angry before. Itachi was usually calm and collected, but now, it seemed like he could lose control at any moment. Fear started creeping up inside of Sasuke. What if Itachi killed the boy? No, he couldn't let that happen.

Itachi was about to punch the boy again when he heard a quiet, trembling voice call out to him, making him stop abruptly.

"Nii-san…" Sasuke said in the loudest voice he could muster up. "Please…. _please_ stop, aniki."

Itachi slowly put his arm down, and released the, now unconscious, boy's neck, making him fall to the ground. He then turned around to face Sasuke and deactivated his sharingan, his gaze softening. He rushed over to Sasuke who was still on the ground.

"Otouto, are you ok?" Itachi asked worried.

With his brother's help, Sasuke managed to sit up. Itachi then gently picked up Sasuke in his arms, minding his cuts and bruises and began to walk, leaving the bullies behind.

Itachi walked to a clearing in the middle of the forest and gently placed Sasuke down against a tree without saying a word.

He then examined the cuts and bruises on his brother's arms and legs, noticing a particularly big wound on his right arm. Itachi took some bandages that were wrapped around his ankles and wrapped it around Sasuke's arm to stop the bleeding.

"Otouto, where else did they hurt you?" Itachi asked, looking directly in Sasuke's eyes.

Sasuke looked down at his lap, not wanting to answer the elder's question. Itachi then took Sasuke's chin with is index finger and thumb, and gently lifted his head.

"Sasuke…..please show me." Itachi said with pleading eyes.

Sasuke only averted his gaze and remained silent.

Itachi sighed.

He pushed his brother's bangs out of his face and revealed bruises on Sasuke's cheeks and forehead, making him frown. He then lifted Sasuke's shirt revealing tons of bruises all over his torso. Itachi grazed the bruises with his fingers, anger bubbling up inside of him again. There were so many bruises. It infuriated him that those boys were causing his otouto so much pain.

"How long has this been happening?" Itachi asked, still looking at the bruises.

Sasuke hesitated.

"...about two weeks."

 _Two weeks?!_ Itachi thought, shocked.

"Sasuke, why didn't you tell me about this?" Itachi asked putting down Sasuke's shirt.

Itachi then felt something wet hit his hand. It was a tear. Itachi looked at Sasuke and saw tears racing down his face.

"I-I don't know!" Sasuke sobbed out."I-I didn't k-know what t-to do. I w-was so scared and c-confused. I-I wanted to t-tell y-you, b-but I j-just couldn't."

Itachi's heart contorted in pain as he listened to his otouto talk. He couldn't stand seeing his dear little brother like this. The older Uchiha wrapped Sasuke in a hug, and Sasuke continued crying in his chest.

"Shhhh….it's ok otouto, I'm here." Itachi comforted. "No matter what, you can always come and talk to me, I'll always be here for you."

Itachi pulled away from the hug and looked directly into Sasuke's eyes.

"But please otouto, don't ever hide such things from me again. You can tell me anything, okay?" Itachi said wiping away Sasuke's tears.

Sasuke nodded.

Itachi hugged him again and Sasuke nuzzled his face in his brother's chest.

"Nii-san?"

"Hmm?"

"Do you think we can keep this between us?" Sasuke asked. "I really don't want kaa-san or tou-san to know about this."

Itachi nodded. Their parents probably wouldn't take this lightly.

"If that's what you want, otouto." Itachi replied. "Come on, let's go home so I can take care of your injuries better."

Itachi put his brother on his back and began walking home.

"I love you, aniki." Sasuke said, as he rested his head on Itachi's shoulder.

Itachi smiled and held onto Sasuke tighter.

"I love you too, otouto."

* * *

AN: That was soo long! Once again, sorry it took so long to post another chapter, school is just so busy! But I hoped you enjoyed!

Please review!


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

AN: Hey guys, sorry it's been a while since I've updated the story. School has been so crazy lately, I can barely find time to write. But I will try to find time to write and update as much as I can. Enjoy!

Itachi: age 13

Sasuke: age 7

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

* * *

Sasuke was laying on his bed, staring at the ceiling. He's been there for a couple minutes now. He was so bored. Itachi has been on a mission for about a week now and Sasuke missed him terribly.

It wasn't fun when Itachi wasn't home.

Sasuke sighed and sat up. He walked out of his room and headed towards the kitchen.

There he saw his mom preparing dinner. Sasuke dropped himself in one of the seats in the kitchen, and put his head on the table.

"Kaa-san, when is nii-san coming back?" Sasuke asked.

"I'm not sure, honey. But I'm sure he should be back soon." Mikoto replied.

Sasuke sighed.

 _That seems so far away….._ Sasuke thought, sadly.

Mikoto turned around to face her son. She saw the sad and lonely expression on her youngest son's face, and gave a sad smile.

"Don't worry, Sasuke. He will be here before you know it." Mikoto reassured, walking towards him then ruffling his hair.

When the sad expression didn't leave her son's face, Mikoto sighed. She wanted to take that look off his face, but she didn't know how.

Suddenly an idea hit her.

"I'll tell you what, how about you go and train for a bit? Then you can show Itachi how much you've improved on your shuriken training when he gets back."

Sasuke immediately perked up and grinned at his mom.

"Really?" Sasuke asked, eagerly.

Mikoto nodded, giggling a bit at her son's enthusiasm.

"Thanks, kaa-san!" Sasuke said, giving his mom a hug and raced towards the door.

"Make sure you get home for dinner!" Mikoto yelled after him.

"Hai!" Sasuke replied.

After getting his shuriken and kunai, Sasuke raced out of the house and headed towards the Uchiha training grounds.

* * *

When Sasuke got to the training grounds, he began training with shuriken. He managed to hit the bullseye every time he threw them, and started to do other techniques he learned at the academy.

After training for about an hour, Sasuke grew tired, but he refused to stop and take a break.

 _I must grow stronger!_ Sasuke thought.

Thirty minutes had gone by and Sasuke switched from throwing shuriken to kunai.

He was panting heavily and was sweating profusely.

He threw a series of kunai, two followed by four kunai, then a last group of six kunai. He hit all the targets except for the last 3 in the series of six kunai, making him frown.

He tried again, but missed the same targets.

 _Dammit!_ He thought, doing it again, but missing once more.

Sasuke continued to do the same technique until he hit all the targets, but he kept missing the same damn targets. He decided he wouldn't stop until he got it.

Another hour had passed and he still hasn't gotten it. He was practically gasping for air, drenched in sweat, and extremely tired.

Sasuke felt his legs give out and he fell on his knees. He was way too tired to get up, but he didn't want to stop until he hit all the targets.

He forced himself up, stumbling a bit, and got his kunai ready.

He threw the first two kunai, both hitting the bullseye. Then threw the next four, hitting the targets perfectly as well. Now was the hard part, he took out all six kunai, aimed, then threw all of them at once.

 _Come on….._ Sasuke thought eagerly, as he watched the kunai ripping through the air.

Sasuke then heard a _clunk!_ And saw that all six had hit the bullseye.

 _Yes!_ Sasuke thought, smiling happily.

Suddenly, Sasuke felt all his strength drain out of him and he began falling. He prepared for the impact that was about to come, but instead he felt two strong arms catch him.

Sasuke looked up to see that it was Itachi who caught him.

"Don't push yourself too hard, otouto." Itachi said, with a small smile.

"Nii-san!" Sasuke exclaimed, giving Itachi a big hug.

Itachi returned the hug, not caring that Sasuke was covered in sweat, he missed his otouto.

"I missed you so much, nii-san!"

"I missed you too, otouto." Itachi replied giving Sasuke a gentle squeeze.

The two brothers decided to lay on a grassy hill that wasn't far from the training grounds. They laid beside each other, enjoying each others company. Sasuke was cuddled up against his brother and Itachi had his hands beside behind his head, looking up at the sky.

"Good job on hitting all those target, otouto. You're getting better, I see." Itachi said, still looking up at the sky.

Sasuke looked up at his brother.

"You saw that?" Sasuke asked.

Itachi looked down at Sasuke and nodded.

"I could tell that you were training really hard because you're drenched in sweat." Itachi said amused, with a smile on his lips.

Sasuke only pouted, making Itachi smile even more.

Sasuke then wrapped his arms around his nii-san and nuzzled closer to him.

"I missed you. You were gone for so long." Sasuke said.

"I know. I missed you too, Sasuke." Itachi said, ruffling Sasuke's hair.

Itachi had been gone for more than a week and had missed Sasuke terribly. He barely had time to spend with Sasuke anymore, and he was so grateful that he got to spend time with him today.

The brothers stayed in silence for a while, enjoying one another's presence.

After a couple of minutes, Itachi realized that it was getting late and their parents were probably looking for them by now.

"We should probably head home now, otouto. It's getting late and kaa-san is probably looking for us." Itachi said

When he didn't get an answer, Itachi looked down to find Sasuke fast asleep, making him smile.

All that training must of made Sasuke extremely tired so Itachi didn't want to wake him.

He gently picked Sasuke up and placed a kiss the side of his head. Itachi began walking home made sure to never forget this moment.

* * *

AN: Sorry if this story is short. An idea popped in my head and I decided to write about it. Once again, I'm sorry for the infrequent updates, I can barely find time in my schedule to write, but I will do my best to update as often as I can.

Please Review!


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

AN: I finally found some free time to write! So, here is a short, cute drabble that I came up with. Enjoy!

Itachi: age 8

Sasuke: age 2

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

* * *

Dinner had just ended at the Uchiha household and Fugaku and Mikoto were heading out for a clan meeting.

Mikoto had trusted Itachi to take care of Sasuke for the night, but she was a bit uneasy to leave her eight year old to take care of her two year old.

"Make sure you put Sasuke to bed at 8, no later than that. Take good care of your brother, ok?" Mikoto stressed, about to walk out the door. Fugaku had left before her, wanting to get there early while she stressed about her sons.

"Hai, kaa-san." Itachi replied, standing near the door.

"Bye, honey." Mikoto said walking out the door.

Once Mikoto left, Itachi turned around to go check on Sasuke. Before he could take a step, he was met with Sasuke running towards him, giving him a hug.

"Nii-san!" Sasuke said happily.

Itachi looked down at Sasuke and smiled. Itachi picked Sasuke up and Sasuke put his chubby arms around his brother's neck and rested his head affectionately on Itachi's shoulder.

"Nii-san, play?" the child asked.

"Ok, otouto. What do you want to play?" Itachi asked, kindly.

"Blocks!"

"Alright." Itachi replied heading towards the living room.

When they got to the living room, Itachi put Sasuke down and followed his brother to were all his toys were.

They both sat on the ground and Sasuke began playing with the blocks as Itachi started building something with them.

The blocks had letters on them so Itachi spelled is name. Sasuke looked at Itachi's blocks and tried to copy.

Itachi realized what Sasuke was doing and smiled.

"Nii-san!" Sasuke said pointing at the blocks, recognizing Itachi's name.

"Well done, otouto." Itachi praised. His otouto was so smart, at the age of two Sasuke could already recognize letters and words.

Sasuke then got up and walked towards the couch, Itachi following closely behind him. He looked up at Itachi and pointed to the TV.

"Nii-san, on?"

"Sure, otouto." Itachi replied.

He picked up Sasuke and turned on the TV, then he sat down on the couch with Sasuke on his lap.

To be honest, Itachi didn't really enjoy watching TV, he thought he could do something better with his time, like train. But since Sasuke was enjoying it he didn't mind watching it with him.

Sasuke leaned back on Itachi, his eyes still locked on the screen, and Itachi wrapped his arms around him, burying his face in his hair.

They stayed like that for a while, watching TV, enjoying each other's company.

A few shows had passed and Itachi realized that it was getting late and that Sasuke was getting tired.

"I think it's time for bed now, Sasuke." Itachi said

"'m not tired." Sasuke replied, then almost immediately yawning afterwards.

Itachi smiled.

"I think you are, otouto." Itachi said, standing up with Sasuke in his arms.

He headed towards Sasuke's room to get Sasuke ready for bed.

Itachi placed Sasuke on the bed and got his pajamas.

Itachi undressed him, but he didn't want to put on his pajamas.

"Nii-san, I do it?" Sasuke asked.

Itachi knew that Sasuke still couldn't dress himself yet, but who was he to stop him from trying?

"Ok, otouto." Itachi said, sitting on the bed.

Sasuke got off his bed and got his shirt and began to put it on, but he couldn't find the arm holes, or the head hole. He kept trying, but he couldn't do it, making him frustrated and sad.

"Nii-san…." Sasuke whimpered out."...help."

Itachi looked at Sasuke and smiled.

He knelt beside Sasuke and helped him out.

"It's ok, otouto." Itachi said, putting Sasuke's shirt on properly.

Itachi helped Sasuke finish changing, then put him in bed, tucking him in.

"Goodnight, otouto." Itachi said, kissing Sasuke's forehead.

Itachi was about to leave Sasuke's room when he felt a small, chubby hand grab his.

"Nii-san, please stay." Sasuke begged, tears threatening to spill out of his eyes.

Itachi looked at him and smiled sadly.

"Ok, I'll stay with you, otouto." Itachi said shutting off the lights.

Itachi crawled into bed with Sasuke, and Sasuke hugged him, burying his face in his chest. Itachi hugged him back and rubbed slow circles on his brother's back to help him sleep.

"Night, nii-san."

"Goodnight, otouto." Itachi said, kissing the top of Sasuke's head.

They laid in silence, enjoying the comfort they give to one another. Sasuke eventually drifted off into a peaceful sleep and Itachi did as well, both brothers cuddling each other.

* * *

AN: Yay! I posted 2 days in a row! Sorry if Sasuke's talking was annoying, he was two in this story and two year olds don't have a big vocabulary so I tried to make it simple. Also I'm sorry if this was short, I will try to make the next chapter long! I hoped you guys enjoyed!

Please Review!


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

AN: Hey guys. Don't worry, I'm not dead. Sorry it's been sooo long since I've updated this story, I've been really busy lately so I apologize. Anyway, here's another chapter, I really liked writing this. Enjoy!

Itachi: age 13

Sasuke: age 7

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

* * *

It was the middle of the night and everyone in the Uchiha household was asleep, except for Itachi who was still awake looking up at the ceiling, thinking.

He had just returned from a mission that night and was given a few day off. It seemed like forever since he's had days off. Now he can finally spend time with Sasuke.

It wasn't until Itachi was drifting off when he sensed Sasuke heading to his room. This wasn't unusual. Sasuke often slept with Itachi who didn't mind, it was actually quite comforting having his baby brother beside him.

Itachi wondered what drew his otouto to his room this time. Nightmares, maybe? However, Itachi did feel a slight disturbance in his brother's chakra, making him a bit concerned.

Sasuke finally made it to the elder's bedroom and gently closed the door behind him.

"Nii-san?" Sasuke called out in a small weak voice.

Itachi turned on his side to look at his brother. He saw his little brother's adorable face in pain as he clutched his stomach, making Itachi frown. Itachi immediately sat up.

"Otouto? Are you ok?" Itachi asked, concerned.

Sasuke shook his head as he walked towards the bed.

"I don't feel good, nii-san. My stomach hurts." Sasuke replied wearily.

Itachi slid over on his bed and held his arms out.

"Come, otouto." Itachi instructed.

Sasuke obeyed and wearily got on to the bed. Itachi enveloped Sasuke in a hug and laid down, bringing his brother with him.

Sasuke's back was against Itachi's chest as the elder hugged him, rubbing slow circles on his stomach in attempt to help him.

"Comfortable?" Itachi asked

Sasuke nodded as he nuzzled closer to his brother, seeking comfort.

After a couple of minutes, Sasuke managed to fall back asleep with Itachi still rubbing circles on his stomach.

The younger Uchiha tossed and turned in his sleep, obviously in pain. Itachi tried his best to comfort his brother, but nothing worked, making him worry.

Itachi tried to stay awake so he could look after his little brother, but eventually he too fell asleep, hugging Sasuke protectively.

* * *

Morning had rolled around and Sasuke suddenly woke up feeling extremely nauseous. He frantically got out of bed and rushed to the bathroom.

Itachi woke up to the bed bouncing violently and immediately sat up, seeing sasuke run out of the room.

"Otouto?" said Itachi worriedly, quickly getting out of bed and going after his brother.

Itachi found Sasuke in the bathroom retching up all the contents of his older Uchiha went over to his little brother and started rubbing circles on his back, pulling his bangs out of his face and saying comforting things to him.

Sasuke's eyes were watery, and his throat burned. When he finally finished, he leaned back on Itachi's chest, looking miserable.

"Nii-san, I don't feel good." Sasuke said weakly.

"I know, otouto, I know." Itachi said, as his picked up his brother.

He brought Sasuke back to his room and set him down on his bed. Itachi felt Sasuke's cheeks and forehead, and surprised to feel the heat radiating off of him.

"I think you might have the stomach flu, otouto." Itachi said, as he gently moved Sasuke's bangs away from his face.

Sasuke looked back at him with watery eyes and a miserable expression on his face, making Itachi feel horrible.

"I'm going to get you some medicine, okay otouto?" Itachi said, about to leave the room.

Itachi was surprised to feel Sasuke grab on to his arm, having a vice grip on it.

Itachi looked at his brother and saw two big onyx eyes pleading for him not to leave.

"Please don't leave me, nii-san." Sasuke pleaded, his grip tightening.

Itachi looked at him with a sad smile on his face. He hated seeing Sasuke so miserable.

"Don't worry, otouto. I'll be right back, I promise." Itachi reassured.

Sasuke hesitantly let go of his brother's arm. Itachi then ruffled Sasuke's hair and went to get the medicine.

* * *

On his way to the kitchen, Itachi bumped into his mother who was just about to head out.

"Itachi, I'm glad I bumped into you. Your father and I are going on a mission, it should only take a day or so, so I want you to look after Sasuke, ok?" Mikoto said.

"Hai, kaa-san." Itachi replied.

"Is you brother awake? I want to say bye before I leave."

"He is, but he's not feeling well." Itachi said. "He threw up this morning."

Mikoto frowned.

"Then maybe I should stay home and look after him," Mikoto began.

"It's ok, kaa-san, I'll look after him." Itachi said.

Mikoto looked at her eldest son, then smiled.

"Alright. Make sure he drinks lots of fluids, ok?" Mikoto said. "Bye, Itachi."

"Bye, kaa-san."

Once Mikoto left, Itachi continued to go get Sasuke some medicine.

* * *

Itachi came back to the room with medicine, water, towels, and a trash can just in case.

Sasuke was laying down on Itachi's bed feeling terrible. His head pounded in his ears, he felt nauseous and his stomach hurt a lot.

"How are you feeling, otouto?" Itachi asked, feeling his brother's forehead and frowning at the heat that remained.

"Bad." Sasuke answered, bluntly.

Itachi smiled sadly. Him and Sasuke are very similar. They both rarely got sick, but when they do, it feels even worse than it's supposed to be.

"Here, this should make you feel better." Itachi said, pouring some medicine into a spoon.

Sasuke looked at the nasty mixture and scowled. He hated taking medicine.

"Nii-san, I don't want to take it. It tastes so gross." Sasuke complained.

"But, otouto, if you don't take it, how are you going to get better?" Itachi asked.

Sasuke groaned in response and turned on his side defiantly, having his back face his brother.

Itachi sighed.

He needed Sasuke to take his medicine, but how? Suddenly, an idea hit him.

Itachi set down the medicine and sat on the bed.

"Ok, otouto. If you don't want to take your medicine, what do you want to do?" Itachi asked.

"Sleep." Sasuke said, hugging his brother.

"Alright." Itachi said, returning the hug. "But let me take your temperature first."

Sasuke was too feverish to realize what was happening. He opened his mouth expecting a thermometer, but was instead met with a spoon of grossness.

Sasuke grimaced as the liquid went down his throat, forcing him to swallow. Scowling at the bitter taste in his mouth, Sasuke looked at Itachi with a pout on his face.

"You tricked me!"

Itachi chuckled.

"Sorry, otouto. It was the only way for you to take your medicine. Here, drink some water." Itachi said, putting a cup to Sasuke's lips.

Once Sasuke finished drinking, he obtained a rebellious glint in his eye, making Itachi know he was up to something. Sasuke suddenly began playfully tickling Itachi, in attempt to take revenge for tricking him.

However, Itachi saw this coming and tickled him back, resulting in the two having a cute tickle war.

They tossed and turned on Itachi's bed trying to tickle one another.

Sasuke managed to sit on top of his brother, and grinned triumphantly.

"I win." Sasuke declared.

Itachi smiled at Sasuke.

"Don't be so sure, otouto." Itachi said, a mischievous glint in his eye.

Itachi was about to grab Sasuke and start cuddling him to death, but he suddenly saw all the colour drain out of his brother's face, making him concerned.

"Otouto?" Itachi asked, worried. "Are you ok?"

Sasuke suddenly got off of his brother and rushed to the bathroom, Itachi following closely behind him.

Once again, Itachi found Sasuke throwing up and helped him.

Once Sasuke finished, Itachi picked up his baby brother and returned to his room.

"It probably wasn't a good idea to play around while you have the stomach flu, huh?" Itachi said gently, as he set Sasuke down on his bed.

Sasuke hugged his brother's torso and shook his head in response.

Itachi smiled sadly at his brother and patted his head, sitting next to him.

* * *

Two days had passed since Sasuke had gotten the stomach flu and he felt much better.

He had finally stopped throwing up and his fever broke. Itachi was with Sasuke the whole time taking care of him and keeping him company.

Sasuke was finally well enough to go to the academy.

However, he would sometimes feel a bit queasy and feverish at times, but it went away after a couple of minutes, so Sasuke didn't pay any attention to it.

Sasuke returned home from the academy and Itachi was there to greet him.

"Welcome home, otouto." Itachi greeted. "How was your day?"

"Same as always," Sasuke replied, plainly. "The stuff they teach there is always so easy."

Itachi chuckled.

"I guess you're too smart for them, otouto." Itachi said, ruffling his brother's hair.

"Wanna go outside and play, nii-san? I don't have any homework today." Sasuke asked his big brother, hopefully.

"Sorry, Sasuke." Itachi said, poking his brother's forehead. "We have the annual clan meeting today, remember?"

"Oh yeah, I forgot about that." Sasuke said, touching the spot that had been poked. "Everyone in the clan goes to this meeting, even those who aren't ninja yet, right, nii-san?"

Itachi nodded.

"We're leavening right after dinner, do you should get ready now." Itachi said.

Sasuke nodded and headed towards his room.

* * *

After dinner, the Uchiha family headed to Nakano shrine for their annual meeting.

Sasuke walked alongside Itachi with a slight grimace on his face.

At dinner, Sasuke barely ate anything because his stomach refused to take food in, resulting in him getting a stomach ache.

This was normal considering the fact that he puked his guts out for two days straight. So, not being able to eat a lot is not out of the ordinary.

Sasuke dismissed the pain, knowing that it would go away soon as it usually did. However, the pain didn't go away. In fact, the pain got worse than it had been back at their house.

Itachi noticed the lack of cheerfulness from his brother and the slight grimace on his face, and immediately got concerned.

"Are you ok, otouto?" Itachi asked worried.

"Yeah," Sasuke answered. "My stomach just hurts a bit, that's all."

Itachi frowned. Sasuke had just recovered from the stomach flu, it better not be coming back.

"Are you feeling feverish, otouto?" Itachi asked, feeling his brother's forehead.

Sasuke shook his head.

"If your not feeling well, otouto, we can go back home."

"I'm fine nii-san. Kaa-san and tou-san should be waiting for us there anyway. Let's go." Sasuke said, running on ahead.

Itachi reluctantly followed his brother, still worried about him.

* * *

When the two brothers got there, Itachi was forced to sit with the adults while Sasuke had to sit with the other clan kids.

Itachi really didn't want to leave Sasuke's side, but he had no other choice.

Fugaku was standing at the front of the room with his two subordinates standing at either side of him. He was talking about some changes and upcoming events that will occur in the clan.

Sasuke tried his best to listen to his father, but he was focused too much on the pain in his stomach.

The pain had gotten worse than before and he was suddenly feeling extremely hot.

As the meeting went on, Sasuke began feeling drowsy and dizzy. The room felt like it was closing in on him.

He had to get out of the room, but no one ever left during the middle of a meeting. It was considered rude and disrespectful.

Suddenly, a wave of nausea washed over Sasuke and he soon felt bile rising up in his throat.

He quickly got up and tried to leave as fast and unnoticeable as possible.

He could feel everyone's gaze on him, especially his father's irritated glare and his mother and brother's worried stare.

But he didn't have time to think about that. He had to get out of there, fast.

Sasuke made it outside in time, and emptied the contents of his stomach on the grass behind the building.

His eyes began to water as he was on his hand and knees heaving up what little dinner he had that night.

Sasuke suddenly felt a gentle hand rubbing comforting circles on his back. He instantly knew that it was his brother.

"You'll be ok, otouto," Itachi comforted, still rubbing circles on his baby brother's back.

Once Sasuke was done, he leaned up against his brother's chest, wearily.

"How are you feeling, otouto?" Itachi asked, pushing Sasuke's bangs out of his eyes.

Sasuke was about to answer, but fatigue washed over him and he suddenly felt too tired to answer his brother's question. Before he knew it, Sasuke was fast asleep.

* * *

Sasuke woke up in his room with a towel across his forehead.

He figured that his mother must have brought him home after he threw up and took care of him while he was asleep.

Sasuke weakly turned over on his right side and to his surprise, Itachi was sitting beside his bed.

"Nii-san?"

"Otouto, how are you feeling?" Itachi asked, concerned.

Sasuke was confused. Why was Itachi here? He should be at the meeting right now. Their father would be extremely angry if he was missing this important meeting.

"Nii-san, what are you doing here?" Sasuke asked. "Why aren't you at the meeting?"

"I brought you home after you threw up and decided to stay to take care of you." Itachi replied, stroking Sasuke's hair.

Sasuke frowned.

"But, nii-san, tou-san will get angry at you for not being at the meeting." Sasuke said.

There's been a stormy atmosphere around his brother and father lately and Sasuke didn't want it to get worse.

"Don't worry about that, otouto. I'll talk with tou-san when he gets home." Itachi replied.

"But nii-" Sasuke began to sit up, causing a wave of nausea to wash over him, interrupting his sentence.

"Don't push yourself, Sasuke." Itachi said, rubbing circles on his brother's back.

Sasuke waited for the wave of nausea to pass before he looked at his brother.

"You should go back to the meeting, nii-san. Tou-san will be angry with you not there. I should be fine by myself." Sasuke lied.

Sasuke really didn't want his nii-san to leave him, but he didn't want Itachi to be in trouble because of him either.

Itachi, however, saw right through his little brother. He knew Sasuke didn't actually want him leave. He also knew that Sasuke would feel bad if he got in trouble for bringing him home and taking care of him.

Itachi smiled at his brother and sat beside him, enveloping him in a hug. Sasuke returned the hug, burying his face in Itachi's chest.

"Otouto, don't worry about me," Itachi began "You're more important than some clan meeting. No matter what, I'm staying with you until you get better."

Itachi kissed the top of Sasuke's head and pulled him closer towards himself.

Sasuke looked up at his brother with big adorable onyx eyes.

"So you're not leaving?" Sasuke asked.

Itachi nodded.

Sasuke breathed out a sigh of relief that made Itachi burst out laughing.

Sasuke pouted.

"What?"

"I knew you didn't want me to leave." Itachi teased, smiling.

"Whatever." Sasuke replied, nuzzling closer to his brother.

The two brother's sat in silence, both providing comfort for each other, until Sasuke broke the silence.

"You know, nii-san. If you stay near me, you might catch the stomach flu." Sasuke said, looking up at his brother.

"That's ok. As long as you get better, I don't mind getting sick." Itachi replied, resting his head on Sasuke's.

"But there is a way to prevent that…" Itachi said.

Itachi then leaned over to the nightstand beside Sasuke's bed and pulled out a medicine bottle with a spoon.

Sasuke looked at the bottle with horrified eyes.

"Time to take your medicine, Sasuke." Itachi said, teasingly.

"Nii-saaaaan!"

The night was then spent with Itachi taking care of his stubborn, yet adorable otouto.

* * *

AN: I love this chapter! Once again, I am so so so sooo sorry that I haven't updated in such a long time. Please bear with me. I got a case of writer's block and when I finally got an idea, school got in the way. Once again, I will do my best to update as much as possible. I hoped you guys enjoyed!

Please Review!


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

AN: This chapter is for Itachi because it's June 9th, meaning it's his birthday! So this is going to be a cute little drabble I made up about Itachi's birthday. Enjoy!

Itachi: age 13

Sasuke: age 6

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

* * *

The sun was rising over the Hokage monument, marking the start of a new day. Slowly, villagers woke up from their slumber and began their day.

In the Uchiha district, Itachi was still in his bed, fast asleep.

Today was his birthday and he was 13 this year. Because of this, he had been given a day off.

To Itachi, his birthdays didn't really matter. He just saw it as another ordinary day of the year, but no matter what he says, his family would always find a way to celebrate it, which Itachi found rather nice.

He slowly began opening his eyes. In front of him were two big black orbs staring back at him. Right away, Itachi knew it was Sasuke.

"Good morning, otouto." Itachi greeted.

"Happy Birthday, nii-san!" Sasuke said happily, jumping on top of his brother.

"Thank you." Itachi said, smiling.

Every year on his birthday, Itachi would always wake up to find Sasuke in his room to greet him Happy Birthday, which he found extremely cute.

"What do you want to do today, nii-san?" Sasuke asked, eagerly. "We could train, go to the park, or we could go to that dango shop you like!"

"We could, but don't you have to go to the academy, otouto?" Itachi asked.

"It's ok, maybe I can miss a day, the academy isn't that important." Sasuke answered. "Plus, I already know all the stuff they teach there."

"Not important, huh?" Itachi said, amused.

Sasuke nodded.

Itachi suddenly grabbed his brother who was on top of him and wrapped him in an embrace.

"Heeeyyy!"

"If the academy isn't so important, then I guess you wouldn't mind staying here with me all day." Itachi said, playfully.

"It's not that I wouldn't want to, but, wouldn't you want to spend your day not in bed?" Sasuke reasoned. "It would be so boring if you stayed here all day on your birthday."

"I don't find this boring. I think it would be fun staying here with my baby brother all day." Itachi teased, hugging Sasuke tighter.

"Nii-saaan!"

Itachi smiled.

"I'm kidding, Sasuke. You know kaa-san would never let you miss the academy for no good reason, so you should start getting ready." Itachi said, letting go of Sasuke.

Sasuke pouted, but did as he was told with Itachi chuckling slightly at his otouto's cute expression.

* * *

Sasuke headed towards the kitchen to ask his mother if he could miss a day at the academy.

He really wanted to spend time with his aniki today and he still needed to buy him a gift. All he had was a lame photo of the two of them when they were little to give him. He wanted to give him something better than that.

"Morning, kaa-san." Sasuke greeted.

"Good morning, Sasuke." Mikoto replied.

"Kaa-san? Is it ok if I miss a day at the academy today?" Sasuke asked, hopefully.

Mikoto frowned.

"Why? Are you not feeling well, honey?" Mikoto asked, feeling Sasuke's forehead.

Sasuke shook his head.

"No, it's just that I wanted to spend time with nii-san today." Sasuke said.

"Sorry Sasuke, but the academy is important, you can't miss it, even if it's your nii-san's birthday." Mikoto replied.

"But then I won't have time to get him a gift."

"Don't worry about that, dear. Itachi care about gifts, just you being with him is enough for him." Mikoto said. "You better get going, or you'll be late."

Disappointed, Sasuke said bye to his family and left to go to the academy.

* * *

School ended early that day due to a little mishap a certain someone (Naruto) created.

This actually worked in Sasuke's favour. Now he would have time to get Itachi a gift.

 _What should I get him?_ Sasuke thought as he walked aimlessly through Konoha. _Maybe some dango? No, he can get that any day. Ninja tools? No, he has a ton of those. UGH! Why is it so hard to get nii-san a gift?!_

Sasuke only had enough money to buy Itachi one thing, so it would have to be something good.

 _I mean nii-san likes to read, so why not a book?_ Sasuke thought.

With that thought in mind, Sasuke went to the store.

* * *

Sasuke stepped out of the store with his brother's gift in hand.

He managed to get a book that Itachi would definitely be interested in. It was perfect!

Sasuke was crossing over a bridge, on his way home, when someone violently bumped into him, ripping the book out of his hands.

Both Sasuke and the person fell to the ground.

"Gee, I'm really sorry for-" the person began. "Oh wait, it's only you, Sasuke-teme."

Sasuke looked up to see it was Naruto who bumped into him.

"What the heck, dobe." Sasuke said, glaring.

Suddenly Sasue realized he dropped the book and frantically started looking for it.

"What are you doing?" Naruto asked.

Sasuke soon found it in the small stream beneath them torn and soggy.

Anger bubbled up in Sasuke. It was all _his_ fault this happened. If that baka wasn't running, this wouldn't have happened. Sasuke wanted to punch Naruto so hard that he would literally fly into next week. But he resisted the urge to and glared at him.

"What?"

"Usuratonkachi." Sasuke said, angrily.

"What did you call me, teme!?" Naruto asked, bitterly.

Sasuke ignored him and walked away.

* * *

Once Sasuke neared his house, his anger had already simmered down and turned into sadness.

Itachi has done so much for him and yet he couldn't even get him a damn present.

Sasuke stepped into his house dejected.

"I'm home." Sasuke said, gloomily.

"Hi otouto." Itachi greeted.

"Hi nii-san." Sasuke said sadly, walking straight towards his room.

Itachi frowned.

Why was Sasuke so sad? Did something happen at school?

Itachi decided to follow Sasuke and ask him about it.

In Sasuke's room, Itachi found Sasuke lying on his bed, face first in his pillow. There was definitely something wrong.

"Otouto," Itachi began. "Are you ok?"

"I'm fine." Sasuke said, his voice muffled by the pillow.

"You shouldn't lie to me, Sasuke. I know there's something wrong," Itachi replied. "You can tell me, otouto."

Sasuke sat up, his face streaked with tears.

Itachi frowned.

"I'm sorry, nii-san. I had a great present for you that I'm sure you would've loved, but that baka, Naruto, ruined it and now all I have is this."

Sasuke handed his brother a wrapped object. Itachi took it and opened it. Inside was a frame with a picture of the two of them when they were little. Itachi holding Sasuke in his arms, both brothers content with life. On the side was a little note written in Sasuke's hand writing:

 _Happy Birthday, nii-san! I hope you have a great birthday, I love you!_

 _Love, your beloved otouto,_

 _Sasuke_

An indescribable warmth filled Itachi's heart after reading that. He couldn't believe his otouto thought this was a bad present.

"I know it's the worst present you've probably gotten, but it's all I have. Sorry for ruining your birthday, nii-san." Sasuke said, sadly.

Sasuke then felt two arms wrap around him.

"Thank you, otouto." Itachi said. "This is the best gift I've ever gotten, please don't think otherwise."

"Really?" Sasuke said, disbelievingly.

Itachi nodded.

"You don't have to get me presents, otouto. Just being with you spending time with you is enough." Itachi said. "I love you, otouto."

I love you too, nii-san." Sasuke replied. "Happy Birthday."

* * *

AN: Sorry for the rushed ending. I had to make sure I would post this on Itachi's birthday and I ran out of time. But I hoped you guys enjoyed!

Please Review


	12. Chapter 12

AN: I'm so sorry it's been so long! Summer has been crazy busy! But here is an extra long chapter for you guys as a sorry present. Enjoy!

Itachi: age 18

Sasuke: age 12

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

* * *

"Tomorrow night is when we gain all power."

In the dead of night, four dark figures talked among themselves, plotting and scheming.

The moonlight revealed that they were Kumo ninjas.

Rogue Kumo ninjas.

"Our goal…. is to steal the sharingan from Konohagakure." Said a man with black hair, who appeared to be the leader of the group. "In return, we were promised power."

"What's the plan, Hiroshan?"

"I've looked into some files and found out that the individual who possesses the strongest sharingan is named Shisui Uchiha," Hiroshan began. "He possesses the kotoamatsukami, an extremely powerful mangekyō sharingan ability. However, he appears to be out of the village for a top secret mission that I can't get any information on."

"So what now?" A purple haired ninja asked.

"Usually, we would wait for Shisui's return and then strike, but we don't have time to wait around. So, I've found another Uchiha whose sharingan is almost on par with Shisui's…" Hiroshan explained. "A fellow named…..Itachi Uchiha."

"Itachi Uchiha?" An orange haired shinobi said. "Isn't he the prodigy of the Uchiha clan? He's supposedly extremely skilled and has no weaknesses. We have no chance against him."

"Ah, but we do," Hiroshan said, smirking. "Yes, Itachi Uchiha is a phenomenal shinobi, indeed. However, he does have one weakness."

Everyone gasped.

Itachi Uchiha, the Uchiha clan's prodigy, has a weakness?

"What is it?" A man with a large scar across his face asked, eagerly.

"More like, _who_ is it." Hiroshan corrected.

Everyone looked at each other puzzled.

"Our first step…...is to capture Sasuke Uchiha."

* * *

"Nii-san?"

"Yes, Sasuke?"

"Can you train with me today?" Sasuke asked.

Itachi looked at Sasuke, he would love to train with his otouto, but he was just about to leave on a mission. He gestured Sasuke over to him, who obediently came like he always does. He was met with two fingers poking him in the forehead, making Sasuke wince.

"Sorry, Sasuke. I have a mission. Why don't you train with Naruto and Sakura instead? They are your teammates after all." Itachi said, poking Sasuke's forehead.

Sasuke scowled at the mention of his teammates names.

"No way. It's almost impossible to train with those two. One fawns over me the whole time and the other is completely and utterly clueless." Sasuke said, unconsciously touching his forehead. "Plus, I already see them way too much during the week. There's no way I'm training with those losers."

Itachi laughed at his otouto's rant.

"Looks like you need to train on your teamwork skills, otouto." Itachi said, playfully putting his hand on Sasuke's head. "But if you do go out to train, don't come home late, kaa-san and tou-san won't be home and I should be coming back late."

Sasuke nodded.

"See you later, otouto." Itachi said, ruffling Sasuke's hair.

"Bye, nii-san."

After Itachi left, Sasuke decided that he would go train by himself. He gathered his stuff and left.

* * *

On his way to the training grounds, Sasuke spotted Naruto and Sakura walking towards him.

"Sasuke!" Sakura called out.

 _Great…._ Sasuke thought, annoyed. _Just what I needed._

Sakura latched onto Sasuke while Naruto watched with a slight hint of jealousy on his face.

"What are you doing right now?" Sakura asked. "Naruto and I were on our way to meet Kakashi sensei and team 10 at Ichiraku, do you want to come?"

"No thanks, I have things to do." Sasuke said, shrugging Sakura off and began walking again.

"Why? Where are you going, teme?" Naruto asked.

"None of your business, usuratonkachi." Sasuke answered, not bothering to look back.

Naruto gritted his teeth, annoyed at Sasuke's arrogant attitude.

"You think you're better than everyone else! That you're too cool for all of us!" Naruto yelled angrily at his teammate.

"Not everyone," Sasuke retorted. "Just you."

That pushed Naruto over the top and he began yelling a bunch of things Sasuke didn't bother listening to. He just stuffed his hands in his pockets and continued walking with a smirk on his face, glad he got to irk his blonde teammate.

* * *

It was getting late. Sasuke had been training non-stop since he got to the training fields. He worked on his ninjutsu, taijutsu, sharingan skills, and did a little bit of some kunai and shuriken training. After all that, he was exhausted.

Sasuke decided he should head home now considering the fact Itachi didn't want him home late. He gathered up all his things and began walking home.

As he was walking, Sasuke felt a bit on edge, like he was being followed. He swiftly turned around, but no one was there. He continued walking.

 _It's probably that baka, Naruto._ Sasuke thought, rolling his eyes.

He suddenly felt an unfamiliar chakra signature a few feet behind him, making him stop in his tracks.

"Who's there?" Sasuke demanded.

"Wow, you're a sharp one." A man said, sarcastically.

"What do you want?"

Sasuke heard a slight chuckle come from the man, making his eyes narrow.

"Listen brat, this is how it's going to go down. You're coming with me whether you like it or not, so if you want to make this difficult, you'll regret it." The man said in a dark tone.

"Like hell I will." Sasuke retorted.

Sasuke quickly turned around and began doing hand signs for a fire jutsu.

"Fire style: Phoenix Flower jutsu!"

A three huge fireballs were launched at the man, however he dodged them with ease.

"I guess we're doing this the hard way." the man said, beginning to create hand signs. "Wind Style: Great Breakthrough!"

Sasuke narrowed his eyes.

 _He knows I can use Fire style. Why would he use Wind style against me?_

Sasuke countered with a fireball jutsu, making the flame twice as big. The fire engulfed the man and Sasuke watched as the man fell on the ground. But something wasn't right.

Soon he realized the man used a substitution jutsu and was aiming a punch at his face, most likely planning to knock him out.

Activating the sharingan, Sasuke blocked the punch by grabbing the man's fist and punching him in the face, causing him to fall on the ground.

The man looked up at Sasuke and was met with crimson eyes scowling at him.

"Nice sharingan you got there," The man said smirking. He observed the kekkei genkai and realized Sasuke's sharingan only had two magatama marks. "But it doesn't look fully mature yet."

"That doesn't concern you. Now tell me, what do you want with me?" Sasuke asked, roughly.

Behind the dark haired man was one of Sasuke's shadow clones threatening to decapitate him with a kunai if he made any wrong moves.

"Don't think you've got me cornered kid." The man said. "Water style: Exploding Water Shock Wave!"

 _Water style jutsu?!_ Sasuke thought.

Thanks to his sharingan, Sasuke was able to see through the man's jutsu. However, before his shadow clone could make a move, the jutsu was activated, causing the clone to disperse and send Sasuke flying.

Sasuke landed a few feet away from his attacker with a hard impact that's sure to leave some bruises. That jutsu was insane! It destroyed most of their surroundings and he didn't even have time to counter even with the sharingan!

Sasuke tried getting up, but something was tied around him, constricting his movements.

"What the hell?"

"I got him, Hiroshan!" An orange haired shinobi said.

"Good. It was such a pain having to fight him." Hiroshan replied.

Sasuke struggled against the rope, trying his hardest to break free, but it was no good. The more he struggled the more he began feeling weaker and weaker.

"It's no use brat, those ropes consume chakra, so the more you struggle, the faster your chakra drains." Hiroshan said, smirking.

Sasuke glared hard at Hiroshan. He hated feeling so weak and defeated. It reminded him of when he was bullied at the academy.

Slowly, Sasuke began feeling his consciousness slip away from him due to his chakra being consumed and since he had just been in a fight, there wasn't much left. This was bad, really bad.

"I told you, you would regret it." Hiroshan said, arrogantly.

That was the last thing Sasuke heard before he was consumed in darkness.

* * *

It was around eleven o'clock when Itachi returned from his mission. He was tired, but not exhausted, the mission was fairly easy. Maybe he could spend some time with Sasuke when he got home.

"I'm home." Itachi called out, stepping into his home.

He took off his shoes, expecting Sasuke to greet him, but nobody came.

 _He couldn't possibly be asleep this early._ Itachi thought, knowing his otouto too well.

"Sasuke?" Itachi called out.

No answer.

The older Uchiha decided to check the younger's bedroom. Maybe he was asleep.

Itachi carefully opened the bedroom door, expecting to see Sasuke, but the room was empty.

Itachi frowned.

 _Could he still be out training?_ Itachi thought. _I told him not to come home late._

Itachi walked out of Sasuke's room and into his own to change out of his uniform

Once he was done, Itachi decided to go to the kitchen and wait for Sasuke to come back.

 _He's pushing himself too hard, staying out this late to train._

When Itachi got to the kitchen, the first thing he noticed was a note on the table. Thinking it was from Sasuke, he picked up the note and began reading it.

Itachi's heart stopped.

What he just read made him feel both sick and furious.

The note said:

 _We have your brother._

 _If you want him back, meet us in the forest near the Hokage Monument at midnight._

 _If you choose not to come,_

 _he's dead._

Itachi crumpled up the note angrily with one hand and in a flash, Itachi was already far from his house, ready to kill whoever was responsible.

* * *

 _Huh? Where am I?_

Carefully opening his eyes, Sasuke regained consciousness. His vision was blurry as he looked at his surroundings. After a couple seconds, his vision came back and he realized he was in a forest still tied up.

"Hey look Jisho, he's awake." An orange haired shinobi said.

"Good, now we can question him." Jisho said, running a hand through his purple hair.

Both men walked up to Sasuke, who was leaned up against a tree.

Sasuke scowled at them.

"What do you want?" Sasuke asked, harshly.

"Relax kid, we just want to ask you a couple questions." Jisho said, a hint of malice in his voice. "You have an older brother, correct?"

 _Why do they want to know about Itachi?_ Sasuke thought.

Sasuke glared in response, not attempting to answer the man's question.

 _Smack!_

"Tch!"

Sasuke received a very strong punch to the face that caused his cheek to start bleeding. He looked down to see that Jisho had brass knuckles on, that were stained with his blood.

Sasuke groaned in pain.

"You better answer brat, we were ordered to get information out of you, no matter what it takes," Jisho said, adjusting his brass knuckles. "And there's plenty more where that came from."

When Sasuke still wouldn't talk, both men grew irritated and began attacking him.

They punched him, kicked him and even cut him a few times, but no matter how much it hurt, Sasuke still wouldn't talk. At this point, both men were extremely frustrated.

"Why don't we use that jutsu Hiroshan showed us, Raishin? That's sure to make this brat talk." Jisho said, anger oozing from his voice.

Raishin nodded.

Raishin quickly went through some hand signs, then slammed his palm on Sasuke's chest, causing Sasuke to yell out in pain.

"What did you do to me?" Sasuke asked, panting.

"We're the ones asking the questions here, brat." Jisho snapped. "Now, for the hundredth time, do you have an older brother?"

When Sasuke didn't answer, a searing pain went through his entire body making him scream out in agony.

Both men smirked.

"You're experiencing the effects of our jutsu." Raishin said, a matter-of-factly. "If you don't do as we please, we'll make the pain even worse."

Sasuke tried to withstand the pain for his brother's sake, but it was unbearable. If this went on, he would surely pass out. He had to answer.

"What if I do!" Sasuke yelled. "What do you want with him anyway?!"

After he answered, the pain died down, causing Sasuke to sigh out in relief.

Jisho smirked.

"Nothing much. All we want from him is…..his sharingan."

Sasuke's eyes widened.

 _They want his sharingan?!_

Sasuke then smirked, causing both men to frown.

"Good luck with that. My brother is an elite shinobi, a prodigy. He won't fall for your stupid tricks."

"Of course he won't. That's why we have you." Jisho said, evilly. "If Itachi Uchiha wants his precious baby brother back alive, he'll have to give us his sharingan in return. He'd probably be useless by then so it wouldn't matter if we killed him in the process."

Sasuke scowled.

"You bastard!"

Jisho only laughed in response.

"However, if our plan backfires and he doesn't come, we need to know where we can find him and you're going to tell us." Raishin said.

"You're an idiot if you think I'll tell you that!" Sasuke retorted.

And just like that, the excruciating pain came back, causing Sasuke to cry out in pain. He wanted so badly for the pain to stop, but no matter what, he won't give them any information about Itachi, even if it kills him. He needs to think of a plan.

After, painfully, thinking long and hard, Sasuke came up with an idea that might work.

"Leave my brother alone." Sasuke said, his voice strained. "If you want the sharingan, take mine."

Sasuke looked up at the two men with his sharingan activated.

Jisho laughed.

"Awe, how touching! You would rather sacrifice yourself instead of your brother! You must really love him, huh?" Jisho said, mockingly.

Sasuke glared at him.

"Can't wait till I tell Hiroshan about this." The purple head murmured to himself. "Nice try, but your immature sharingan is useless to us. We need a sharingan that's fully matured and powerful, and that's exactly what Itachi has."

 _Damn,_ Sasuke thought. _This is bad._

"Now, where can we find Itachi Uchiha?" Raishin asked.

When the young Uchiha didn't answer, Raishin went through more hand signs, making the pain ten times worse.

"AAAAHHHHHH!" Sasuke screamed out in torment.

His body couldn't stand the pain anymore. In less than a second, Sasuke lost consciousness.

* * *

It was now midnight and Itachi arrived right on time. He was in a clearing, right beside a cliff. In front of him were three rouge kumo nins.

"I see you decided to come, Itachi Uchiha." Hiroshan said, smirking.

"You'll give back my brother if you know it's good for you." Itachi replied, killing intent leaking out of him.

The kumo nins froze upon feeling the killing intent. This guy was no joke.

Hiroshan smirked.

"Awe, I guess your brother does mean something to you." Hiroshan said, mockingly. "But unfortunately, that's not how it's going to work. If you want your brother back, you have to give us something in return.

Itachi narrowed his eyes.

"And what would that be?" Itachi asked, skeptically.

Hiroshan chuckled slightly.

"The precious kekkei genkai of the Uchiha clan….the sharingan." Hiroshan replied, evilly. "And who better to get it from than the prodigy of the Uchiha clan?"

Itachi glared at Hiroshan.

 _This can cause an international crisis._

"Is that so? You're fools if you think I'd simply just give you my sharingan." Itachi retorted.

"We thought as much," Hiroshan answered. "That's why we came prepared."

Hiroshan thrusted his thumb towards the cliff.

Itachi shifted his gaze and found Sasuke all beaten up, hanging over the cliff with the rope tied around his waist, unconscious. Above him was Raishin, threatening to cut the rope that would make Sasuke plunge into his doom.

The prodigy's eyes slightly widened in horror.

 _Sasuke!_

"If you make one wrong move, Raishin will cut the rope, killing your brother instantly." Hiroshan said. "That really would be a shame, considering the strong bond you two have. The little brat even tried sacrificing himself for your sake. Of course, it didn't work. His sharingan is useless compared to yours."

Itachi scowled at Hiroshan.

He wanted so badly to slaughter everyone of those kumo nins and make them suffer. However, he couldn't act rashly. Sasuke's life was on the line, he can't let his emotions get the best of him. He needs to carefully think of a plan. He can't afford to lose his brother over something as trivial as this.

After a moment's hesitation, Itachi was about to make a move when he heard someone call out to him.

"Nii-san!"

Itachi jerked his head towards the cliff. It was Sasuke. He finally regained consciousness.

"Nii-san! You have to get out of here! They're going to try to take your sharingan! Don't worry about me, just go!" Sasuke warned.

"Raishin! Shut the brat up!" Hiroshan said, annoyed.

Raishin nodded and went through a series of hand signs, activating the jutsu.

Sasuke screamed out in agony as his insides throbbed harshly with pain. A second later, he lost consciousness once again.

Although he didn't show it, Itachi was horrified. What the hell did they do to him?

That just infuriated him even more.

Itachi activated his sharingan and caught the gaze of Raishin. Big mistake. Itachi discreetly put him under a genjutsu then shifted his gaze over to Hiroshan.

"I guess you want to do this the hard way." Hiroshan said. "Too bad, your brother had a lot of potential to become a great ninja. I guess that'll never happen."

Hiroshan turned to look at Raishin and Sasuke and gave some sort of signal. When Raishin didn't do anything, Hiroshan frowned and did it again. Once again Raishin remained motionless. Hiroshan grew irritated.

"Raishin, you fool! Are you blind?! I did the signal! You're ruining the plan!" Hiroshan yelled, angrily.

When Raishin didn't give an answer, Hiroshan turned back around to look at Itachi, but to his surprise, he found both of his comrades on the ground, knocked unconscious and Itachi gone.

He suddenly felt someone's presence beside him releasing the strongest killing intent he's ever felt, making him freeze on the spot. It had to be Itachi.

"Your plan was clever, I'll give you that. However, you underestimate the power of the Uchiha clan and the sharingan. Your arrogance got in the way of your success, for that, you pay the price." Itachi said, darkly.

The older Uchiha pierced a sword through Hiroshan's chest, causing him to cough up blood. However, Hiroshan's body disappeared in a puff of smoke, revealing Itachi's sword lodged in a log.

 _Substitution Jutsu!_

Itachi swiftly turned around to find Hiroshan holding a kunai against the rope holding Sasuke, threatening to cut it. Itachi's eyes narrowed.

"You still have a chance to save him," Hiroshan bargined. "Just give me your sharingan and I'll let your little brother live."

 _I have no choice…._

The prodigy dropped his sword in surrender. His head hung as he brought his hands to his face, his bangs covering his face.

Hiroshan watched intently as Itachi stood there with his hands over his eyes. When nothing happened, Hiroshan became impatient.

"What are you waiting for?! You want your brother to live don't you?!" Hiroshan yelled.

Blood trickled down Itachi's face and through his hands, making Hiroshan smirk. He slowly released his face, his bangs still covering his face. His hands were coated in his own blood.

"You make me sick." Itachi retorted, looking up at Hiroshan.

Hiroshan gasped.

Itachi's sharingan had a different pattern to it than before. There was no doubt, it was the mangekyō sharingan.

 _Tsukuyomi!_

Hiroshan tried to look away, but it was too late, he was already put under the genjutsu. This fight is over.

Itachi jumped up on the branch above Sasuke and kicked Hiroshan off. He carefully got Sasuke down and instantly enveloped him in a hug.

The older Uchiha released a shaky breath, as if he had been holding it the whole time. He had been so close, _so_ close to losing him, Itachi just wanted to burst out in tears, but he kept his composure. Itachi nuzzled his face in Sasuke's hair, breathing the sweet scent of his precious otouto. Having Sasuke in his arms allowed relief to wash over him. Words cannot explain how scared and worried he was. If he lost him, Itachi wouldn't know what he'd do.

After a couple of minutes, Itachi picked up Sasuke, minding his injuries, and carried him home.

* * *

When Sasuke regained consciousness, he found himself in his room. He looked around, confused.

 _How did I get here?_

All his cuts and bruises were tended to, but he didn't know how. Sasuke tried to remember what happened. Once everything came back to him, he frantically sat up.

"NII-SAN!"

A second later, Itachi came into the room, a worried expression on his face.

"Sasuke, what's wrong?" Itachi asked.

The young Uchiha got up and raced to his brother, giving him a big hug.

"Are you ok?" Sasuke asked, nuzzling his face in Itachi's chest.

Itachi chuckled.

"I'm fine, otouto. How are you feeling?" Itachi said, kneeling down.

"I'm ok. I'm just a bit sore, but- wait. What are we going to do about that jutsu Raishin put on me!?" Sasuke asked, frantically.

"Don't worry about that, I already took care of it." Itachi replied.

The younger raven sighed out in relief.

He then looked up putting both his hands on either side of Itachi face and looked directly into his eyes.

"What are you doing, Sasuke?" Itachi asked amused.

"You still have your eyeballs, right?"

Itachi laughed.

"Yes, I still have my eyeballs, otouto."

Sasuke smiled and gave his brother another hug, which Itachi gladly returned. Soon Sasuke's shoulders started shaking and Itachi realized he was crying.

"Otouto?"

"Aniki, I was so scared. I thought I was going to lose you," Sasuke sobbed out. "And I thought I going to die. I didn't know what to do."

Itachi hugged Sasuke tighter.

"It's ok, I've got you." Itachi said, rubbing circles on his brother's back. "You're safe now. However, if a situation like that comes again, don't sacrifice yourself for me like you did. I wouldn't be able to live with myself if that happened. I'm here to protect you, ok?"

Sasuke nodded against his brother's neck.

"I won't let you die. That's a promise."

* * *

AN: Aaand, finished! Sorry it took so long to upload this chapter. I wasn't really happy with how this turned out, but if you guys enjoyed it, it's ok. I'm going on a trip in a couple days so there might be a hiatus, but I will try my best to write while I'm away. This story was supposed to be split into two chapters, but this is supposed to be a series of one shots so I decided to make it into one whole chapter for you guys. I hope you enjoyed!

Please Review!


	13. Chapter 13

AN: Hey guys, I'm back from my trip! So here's another chapter. This is another Sickfic, I can't help it, I just love writing those kinds of fanfiction. I also realized that I always put Sasuke in a bunch of terrible situations and then have Itachi come and make everything better, but I can't help it! I just love protective older brother Itachi stuff! It's so cute! But anyways, I decided to let them switch roles, so now Itachi is in a vulnerable situation and Sasuke makes everything better….kinda. Enjoy!

Itachi: age 18

Sasuke: age 12

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

* * *

It was a sunny afternoon in the Leaf Village. Itachi was trudging his way back home from a three day ANBU mission in Amegakure.

When he left Amegakure, he bagan feeling a bit off. His head pounded, he felt groggy and his nose was runny.

He didn't pay any attention to it until it got worse. He then came to the conclusion that he was coming down with something, which was strange considering how he barely ever gets sick.

"I'm home." Itachi called out weakly.

Sasuke was at the front to greet his brother like he always does.

"Hi, nii-san. Welcome home."

Itachi took off his shoes and patted Sasuke's head with a very nasally "Hi, otouto." as he walked to his room.

Sasuke frowned.

That was strange. Itachi would always greet Sasuke with a smile or a hug or _something_ , but Itachi just gave him a lousy pat on the head. He barely even looked at Sasuke. Not to mention, his voice sounded very congested. Was Itachi sick?

Worried, Sasuke followed his brother to his room.

* * *

Itachi collapsed on his bed feeling terrible. He cleared his throat and winced at the pain that came after, oh the joys of being sick. What he really needed now was a nap.

Itachi closed his eyes, trying to ignore the pounding in his head, but before he could drift off, he heard someone come into his room. He turned his head to find Sasuke by the door.

"Nii-san, are you ok?" Sasuke asked, concern clear in his voice.

"I'm fine, otouto," Itachi answered sitting up. "I have a bit of a cold, that's all."

Sasuke walked over to his brother and put a hand on his forehead.

"I think it's more than a cold, nii-san. You're burning up." Sasuke said, worried.

"I'm ok, otouto. Don't worry about it." Itachi replied as he sniffed.

Sasuke opened his mouth to say something but their mother called for Itachi. Itachi ruffled Sasuke's hair and walked out of his room with Sasuke following behind him.

"Yes, kaa-san?"

"Itachi, I've been called away for a couple of hours so I need you to take care of your brother. Dinner is in the fridge and I also want you clean up around the house." Mikoto said, about to walk out the door.

"Hai." Itachi answered, trying his best not to sound sick. He didn't need his mother fussing over him, especially since he has a very important mission coming up in a few days.

Sasuke stood beside his brother, his eyes darting back and forth from Itachi to their mother. Itachi couldn't clean, he needed to rest.

"Kaa-san, Itachi is-"

Sasuke abruptly stopped when he was met with a hand to his mouth. He looked up at his brother and pouted.

"Stay safe, kaa-san." Itachi said, smiling as he covered his brother's mouth.

Mikoto looked at her sons in wonder for a second, but then ignored it.

"Thanks, dear. See you later." She said as she walked out the door.

When Mikoto left, Itachi released his brother who was now pouting at him.

"Why did you do that?" Sasuke asked, slightly annoyed.

"Sorry, otouto. I can't let kaa-san know I'm not feeling well." Itachi answered. "I have an important mission in a couple days and you know how she gets."

Sasuke gave him a look.

"Yeah, but you're _sick._ " Sasuke said. "You can't clean the house, let alone go on a mission. You need to rest. Let me clean for you."

Itachi looked at his little brother and saw nothing but concern in his adorable onyx eyes, sending a ping of guilt through his heart.

Itachi sighed.

"Alright, otouto," Itachi said in defeat as he coughed slightly. "If you really want to, I won't stop you."

Sasuke smiled.

"Ok, go take a nap or something. I'm going to wash the dishes, if you need anything just call for me." Sasuke replied as he turned towards the kitchen. "I'll bring you some medicine later."

Itachi smiled as his heart filled with warmth at the amount of love his baby brother had for him.

"Thank you, otouto." Itachi said as he rubbed his nose. "But be careful, there are knives in the sink. Don't cut yourself."

He was answered with a vague "Yeah, yeah…" as Sasuke entered the kitchen. The older Uchiha chuckled, then headed towards his room to take that long awaited nap.

* * *

Itachi was only thirty minutes into his nap when he jolted awake from a loud crash coming from the kitchen and a very audible cry of pain afterwards.

He immediately got up and rushed to the kitchen, trying to ignore his throbbing head and dizziness.

When the older Uchiha got there, he found broken glass on the ground and his little brother looking at it, dumbfounded.

"Sasuke? What happened?" Itachi asked, worriedly. "Are you hurt?"

The younger Uchiha discreetly put his his hand behind his back and forced a smile.

"No, I'm fine." Sasuke lied. "I accidentally dropped something. Don't worry, I'll clean it up, just go back to sleep."

While putting away the dishes, Sasuke accidentally dropped some thinking he could carry more than ten plates, as well as ten cups at the same time. He then somehow got broken glass all over his hand.

Itachi eyed him suspiciously.

Sasuke smiled sheepishly at him as he tried to ignore the burning pain in his hand. His hand hurt a lot, it felt like a bunch of senbon were jabbed into it.

"Show me your hand." Itachi suddenly said.

Sasuke flinched. Trust Itachi to see right through him.

"What do you mean?" Sasuke asked, playing dumb.

"Sasuke..." Itachi warned with a stern look, but in a way still gentle.

The younger Uchiha sighed and reluctantly held out his hand.

Itachi began examining the injured hand and noticed the blood oozing out of the broken glass shards. Sasuke looked at it with wide eyes as he felt panic slowly rising in his chest.

Sensing his brother's anxiety, Itachi led him to the kitchen table and sat him down. He then got a med kit from the cupboard and sat next to Sasuke. He took Sasuke's injured hand and looked at him.

"This is going to hurt, otouto, but you need to work with me, okay?." Itachi said, his voice still very much congested.

Sasuke nodded hesitantly and Itachi began removing the glass with from his brother's hand. The young raven winced as Itachi quickly extracted the pieces of broken glass, trying to cause his younger brother as little pain as possible.

Once finished, Itachi cleaned the wounds and began wrapping Sasuke's hand securely in bandages, clearing his throat every now and then.

"All done." Itachi said as he kissed his brother's forehead. "Next time, be more careful, otouto. You take a break, I'll clean the rest of the kitchen."

Sasuke was about to object, but decided not to since he already caused his brother enough trouble.

"Alright. Thanks, nii-san." Sasuke replied, disappointment hidden in his voice.

* * *

When Itachi finished cleaning the mess in the kitchen, he went back to his room to take another nap. His head was killing him.

He slept for about three hours straight and by the time he woke up, the sun had already begun to set.

The prodigy coughed slightly as he turned over on his side. He was surprised to see Sasuke sitting on the ground near his bedroom door.

"What are you doing, otouto?" Itachi asked, his voice hoarse. "Why are you sitting on the floor?"

Sasuke looked up at his brother.

"I came here a while ago to give you some medicine," Sasuke said, pointing to bedside table where some pills, a cup of cough medicine and a glass of water were. "But you were sleeping and I didn't want to wake you up."

Itachi smiled.

"Thanks, otouto." Itachi replied as he cleared his throat. "How's your hand?"

Sasuke's gaze went to his bandaged hand as he glared at it for a second.

"It's fine." Sasuke answered, his voice quiet, almost sad sounding.

The older raven frowned as he heard the quiet reply.

"What's wrong?" Itachi asked.

Sasuke looked at his brother, then averted his gaze.

"Nii-san, I-"

The young Uchiha stopped when his brother went into a violent coughing fit.

Sasuke immediately got up and went over to the older Uchiha. He helped him sit up and patted his brother's back in attempt to help him. The young raven then reached over to the nightstand and grabbed the cup of cough medicine.

"Here, aniki." Sasuke said as he put the cup of medicine towards Itachi's mouth.

Itachi took in the medicine and suppressed a grimace as he swallowed. Sasuke handed him the glass of water as he rubbed his brother's back.

"Thank you, otouto." Itachi said as he coughed slightly. "Now tell me, what's wrong?"

Sasuke sighed as he took the now empty glass from his brother and placed it on the bedside table.

"I don't know, I guess I kinda feel bad for being such a hassle for you while you're sick." Sasuke replied. "I'm the one who told you to rest, but you still had to clean the mess I made. I'm supposed to be taking care of _you_ right now, not the other way around."

Itachi looked at his little brother with an amused look on his face.

"Come here." Itachi said as he suddenly pulled his brother into bed with him.

"Wha- hey!"

The Uchiha prodigy wrapped his brother in a hug so that he was facing away from him.

"My foolish otouto, no matter how sick I am, you need to know that I'm always going to take care of you and clean up whatever mess you may make." Itachi said, lightheartedly. "It's my job to."

He gave his brother a gentle squeeze and kissed the top of his head.

"So please don't feel bad, otouto."

Sasuke smiled.

"Okay, aniki. I feel a bit better."

"Good." Itachi said as he tightened their embrace.

It wasn't until Itachi cleared his throat again that Sasuke realized something.

"You know, if we stay like this, I might catch whatever you have." Sasuke said, sounding a bit paranoid.

"Don't worry, otouto. If you get sick, I can give you that delicious medicine you know and love to make you feel better." Itachi replied playfully, knowing fully well of his brother's deep hatred for medicine.

" _What?!_ " Sasuke practically screamed. "No, no ,no, no, no. There's absolutely no way I'm going to let that happen."

The young Uchiha struggled to break free from his older brother's embrace, but it was no use.

"You can try to break free Sasuke, but you know it's useless." Itachi said, amused.

"Niiii-saaaan!"

The rest of the day was spent exactly like this and it was just what Itachi needed to get over his terrible cold.

* * *

AN: I know there are a bunch of fics out there like this, but I couldn't stop myself from writing one! And although Itachi is supposed to be the one who needed to be taken care of, of course Sasuke still gets hurt. Ugh! I'm sorry! Once again, I couldn't help myself. I wanted to get this out to you guys as soon as I could so the ending isn't the best. I also apologize for the infrequent updates. I've been trying to edit some of the chapters so it might take a while to come out with new chapters. Thanks for understanding! I hope you enjoyed!

Please Review!


	14. Chapter 14

AN: Hey guys, sorry for not updating in a long time. School has been the way and I'm also editing some of the chapters. But here I am with a new chapter! Enjoy!

Itachi: age 13

Sasuke: age 7

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

* * *

It was morning in Konoha and Sasuke was currently in the kitchen eating breakfast.

The little Uchiha had a frown on his face as the thought of going to the academy filled him up with dread. He normally wouldn't feel like this, being one of the few children who actually liked going to the academy, but today wasn't any ordinary day.

Today was vaccine day.

To most people, it probably wouldn't be such a big deal, but to Sasuke, it was a _very_ big deal. He was terrified of needles. He couldn't stand being around them, let alone having one shoved in his arm. The more he thought about what was to come, the faster his heart pounded in his chest.

"Sasuke, honey you're going to be late if you don't eat faster." Mikoto said as she stood by the counter.

 _Good._ Sasuke thought as he finished the last of his breakfast. He then got up and put his dishes in the sink before putting on his bag.

Mikoto followed her youngest son towards the front door and gave him a gentle kiss on the forehead.

"Have a good day, dear. I'll be out doing errands all day, so no one will be home," Mikoto said. "But your father and I should be back by the time you finish at the academy."

"Okay, see you later, kaa-san." Sasuke said as he headed out the door and with a heavy heart, dragged himself to the academy.

* * *

The beginning of the day went smoothly. There were no medical nins or any needles to be seen anywhere.

Sasuke completely forgot about the vaccinations, he was too caught up in school work and training. It wasn't until the last two hours of class that he was reminded of those cursed vaccines.

"Okay everyone, we will now begin vaccinations." Iruka announced to the class. "I will call each of you alphabetically, and you will head over to the room next door where you will receive your vaccine from one of the friendly medic nins."

As Sasuke listened to Iruka talk, his heart began pounding against his chest and his breathing became shallow.

To everyone else, Sasuke didn't look fazed at all. He looked composed and stoic as he always did when at the academy. However, on the inside, Sasuke was a mess. The thought of someone injecting a needle in his arm made him want to get up hide somewhere.

Yes he knew it was cowardly, but he couldn't help it. Aside from thunderstorms, nothing scared him more than a medic nin holding a needle.

As Iruka went down the list and quickly approached Sasuke's name, the young raven began to panic.

 _I can't do this, I can't do this…_ Sasuke repeated to himself. He had to get out of there, but how?

He refused to have a panic attack in front of all his classmates, he couldn't show weakness, he had his ego to uphold. So he did the only logical thing he could think of.

Iruka looked up as Sasuke's hand rose.

"Yes, Sasuke?"

"May I go to the bathroom?" Sasuke asked respectfully, keeping his emotions hidden.

Sasuke noticed that some students had strange looks on their faces, given the fact that Sasuke has never left class for such things before, but they soon dismissed it and went on to continue chatting with their friends.

Iruka nodded, allowing Sasuke to stand up and walk out of the room.

Once out of sight, the young Uchiha sprinted out of the building, wanting to get as far away from those damn needles as possible.

He ran all the way to his house, avoiding anyone he or his family might know. He knew this was childish, but there was no chance in hell he was going to face those needles.

Sasuke finally reached his house and slammed the door behind him, his adrenaline slowly decreasing.

It's a good thing nobody was home, or else he would've been in big trouble.

Sasuke already had the whole thing planned out in his head. He'll leave his house before his parents come back, then return home after a few minutes so they think he just came back from the academy. He would deal with Iruka tomorrow, hoping that he wouldn't contact his parents.

The young raven was half way down the hall to his room when he heard the front door open and a familiar voice call out.

"I'm home."

Sasuke froze.

 _Why is nii-san home?!_ Sasuke thought in alarm. _He isn't supposed to be back until tomorrow!_

Without thinking, the young Uchiha rushed into the nearest room and cursed when he realized he had just gone into Itachi's room. Not having much time, Sasuke dived under his brother's bed and concealed his chakra as best he could.

His heart thumped against his chest as he saw the shoji door open and watched as Itachi entered the room.

 _Please don't notice me, please don't notice me….._ Sasuke thought as he shut his eyes tightly.

Sasuke stayed motionless as he heard his brother walk around the room putting his ANBU equipment away, but there was something about his stride that made Sasuke feel uneasy. He felt himself panic even more when he felt the older Uchiha sit on the bed.

 _Why did I do this? Why did I think-_

"Sasuke, why are you under my bed?"

Sasuke flinched as he was brought out of this thoughts.

Not having any other choice, the young Uchiha crawled out from under the bed and turned towards his brother, putting on a confused face.

"Huh? This isn't the academy bathroom," Sasuke said playing dumb. "I should probably go…"

"Hold it, Sasuke." Itachi said, pulling on the waistband of his brother's shorts to stop him from walking away. "What are you doing here? Aren't you supposed to be at the academy right now?"

Sasuke faced Itachi, not knowing what to say.

"I….uhh…." Sasuke stammered, averting his gaze.

When Itachi didn't get an answer, he looked at his otouto's face and saw fear in those big, onyx eyes of his, making him worry.

"Otouto?" Itachi said with concern. "What's wrong?"

Sasuke looked at his brother as tears pricked his eyes.

"Nii-san, please! Don't make me go back!" Sasuke exclaimed, throwing his arms around his brother. "I can't go back! Please!"

Itachi was shocked. Why was Sasuke acting like this all of a sudden? He's never like this towards the academy.

"Otouto, calm down, it's okay," Itachi soothed as rubbed his brother's back. "Why can't you go back to the academy?"

Sasuke hesitated.

"They have needles, Itachi…" Sasuke replied, burying his face in the older Uchiha's neck.

Itachi smiled pityingly, knowing exactly what this was about now. He knows his little brother well and he knows how scared of needles Sasuke is, it's one of his top fears.

"Otouto, it's okay. The needles are only there to help you, so you don't get sick." Itachi reassured. "What are the vaccines for?"

"Chakra virus." Sasuke said, his voice muffled.

"See? You don't want to get chakra virus, do you?" Itachi asked, hoping his baby brother would understand how important this vaccine was.

Sasuke looked at his brother.

"That's okay! I don't care if I get sick!" Sasuke reasoned. "I'll drink all the yucky medicine you give me, I promise! Just please, don't let me get stabbed with a needle."

Itachi sighed. Although, it was quite surprising to hear Sasuke say he would take any medicine he would give him, considering the deep hatred his little brother harboured towards the very substance.

"Okay, let's put it this way," Itachi said. " _I_ care if you get sick. Chakra virus could be fatal and I don't want to see you getting it."

"But Ita-nii," Sasuke said, glomping his brother again. "I'm scared."

Itachi started rubbing his brother's back again, smiling sadly.

"I know, but you need to do this otouto," the older Uchiha said softly. "I'll walk you back to the academy, okay? And I'll even pick you up after."

"Really Itachi?" Sasuke asked as he released the embrace.

"Really Sasuke."

With this, the Uchiha brothers left their house.

* * *

When they finally reached the academy, Sasuke stopped in front of the building, his grip around his brother's hand tightening.

Sensing his brother's distress, Itachi smiled reassuringly.

"Don't worry, otouto," Itachi said. "I promise I'll be here as soon as you finish."

Sasuke let a small smile appear on his face and nodded.

Itachi gave his baby brother's hand a gentle squeeze before letting go.

The young raven walked into the academy, his heart pounding in his chest.

 _I can do this, I can do this…._

As Sasuke entered the classroom, Iruka was in the middle of calling the last few people for vaccinations.

"Ah Sasuke, there you are. I was getting worried," Iruka said, noticing Sasuke. "You can head over to the the other room to get your vaccinations."

Sasuke nodded and went the other room. There he was greeted by one of the medical nins who told him to sit in one of the chairs.

He obliged and was soon being asked a series of questions which he answered vaguely to, his mind racing.

The medical ninja then began cleaning a spot on Sasuke's arm with rubbing alcohol, causing Sasuke to grow even more anxious. A million thoughts were going through his head.

 _I'm going to die. They're going to sever my arm and leave me to-_

Sasuke slightly flinched as he felt the needle being injected in his arm. He managed to keep a straight face, but he couldn't stop the tears that filled his eyes. Oh how he hated needles.

The procedure was fast, but not fast enough for Sasuke. It felt more like a couple minutes than a few seconds to him.

Once the medic nin removed the needle, a trail of blood ran down Sasuke's arm, making his eye twitch.

The medical ninja calmly cleaned it up and put a bandage on the wound.

"All done," the medic said with a smile. "You are allowed to head home now."

Sasuke nodded and didn't waste a second before rushing out of the room and through the academy doors.

* * *

Itachi was outside the academy, waiting for Sasuke. He couldn't help but feel a twinge of worry for his brother. He knew how much Sasuke loathes needles.

He can only hope his brother won't have a mental breakdown or something.

Last time Sasuke got a needle was a few years ago, which Itachi remembered vividly. His poor brother had burst into tears as soon as a needle came into sight and no one was able to calm him down, except Itachi. Hopefully that won't be the case here.

The older Uchiha breathed a sigh of relief when he saw Sasuke finally come out of the academy.

To anyone else, Sasuke would have looked completely fine, but Itachi wasn't fooled. He could see the tears threatening to fall out of his obsidian eyes.

Sasuke's eyes immediately locked on his brother, allowing him to rush over towards him.

"How did you do, otouto?" Itachi asked, putting a hand on the young Uchiha's head. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine. It wasn't that scary." Sasuke said, obviously lying.

Itachi smiled gently.

"Tell that to the tears in your eyes, otouto." Itachi teased, as he gently wiped his brother's eyes.

Sasuke pouted, earning a small chuckle from the elder.

"But I'm proud of you." Itachi said, ruffling Sasuke's hair.

Sasuke's pout turned into a smile as he hugged his brother, Itachi gladly returning it.

"Aniki?"

Itachi smiled. "Hmm?"

"I _really_ hate needles." Sasuke said bluntly.

Itachi laughed.

"I _know,_ Sasuke." Itachi said, amused as he poked his brother's stomach. "Now let's go home before they give you another needle."

Sasuke's eyes widened as his eyes teared up, surprising Itachi.

"I'm _kidding_ , otouto." Itachi said gently.

Sasuke pouted again. "You're mean, nii-san."

Itachi poked Sasuke's forehead smiling.

"Come on, let's go."

With that, the two brothers walked home together. Let's just say, Sasuke won't be getting over his fear anytime soon.

* * *

AN: I'm not really satisfied with how this chapter came out, but I hope you enjoyed anyway! Sorry for the crappy ending, but I didn't really know how to end it. I also wanted this out before December. I realize I'm making Sasuke scared of bunch of random things, but I can't help it! I'm sorry, but I hope you enjoyed! I will try my best to update as much as I can.

Please Review!


	15. Chapter 15

AN: Hope you guys enjoyed the holidays! This chapter is inspired by other fics I've read so I hope you enjoy!

Itachi: age 13

Sasuke: age 7

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

* * *

Sasuke was walking home from a long day at the academy. A huge yawn erupted from him as he made his way around the village, eager to be in the comfort of his own home.

As he passed the hokage estate as he always does on his way home, the young raven saw what

seemed to be a group of ANBU exiting the building. One of the members being Itachi.

Sasuke immediately broke into a smile, glad to see his big brother for the first time in three days. Maybe they could walk home together?

The young Uchiha was about to approach his brother when he suddenly stopped.

 _Who's that?_ Sasuke wondered a bit bitterly.

Walking beside Itachi was a girl with long brown hair and deep blue eyes that were strikingly similar to a certain dobe Sasuke knew. The girl was talking away as Itachi politely listened.

Sasuke's eyes widened.

Not wanting his brother to spot him, Sasuke rushed into a small alleyway that was conveniently near him and observed from there.

Who is that girl? A fangirl, perhaps? Both him and Itachi had a big problem with annoying fangirls.

Maybe one of them has somehow wormed their way into ANBU and was now torturing his poor brother. Yes, that had to be it.

As soon as Sasuke had come to that conclusion, he almost immediately had some sort of heart attack as he saw the girl slither her slender arm around his brother's own arm.

Sasuke gaped. _What?_

What made this whole thing worse was that Itachi didn't even attempt to pull his arm away. In fact, he _smiled_ at her.

An unfamiliar feeling washed over Sasuke as he continued gaping.

If this girl wasn't a fangirl, then who was she?

Sasuke's eyes widened.

No.

She couldn't possibly be? There was no way Itachi could actually have a-

"Yo Sasuke,"

Before he could drop dead, Sasuke flinched as he was brought out of his thoughts. He turned around to see Shisui standing behind him.

"Whatcha lookin' at?" Shisui asked him playfully.

"Hey Shisui," Sasuke said dismissively as he turned around to continue spying on his brother.

Curious of what his baby cousin was looking at, Shisui followed Sasuke's gaze to find him looking at Itachi.

"Ahh, spying on your brother, are we?" Shisui asked with a smirk.

"Ah… no. I would never do that to nii-san."

Shisui raised an eyebrow having a hard time believing that.

Sasuke sighed.

"Fine, I am." Sasuke admitted. "But it's only because of her."

He pointed towards the girl.

Shisui chuckled.

"It seems my boy Itachi has finally got himself a girlfriend." Shisui joked.

Sasuke nearly choked on his own saliva. He whirled around to face Shisui.

"Is she really Itachi's girlfriend?" Sasuke asked a hint of jealousy in his voice.

Shisui shrugged.

"Maybe, but I highly doubt it. Itachi is too focused on training and stuff to even care about having one."

Relief washed over Sasuke, but he still couldn't shake the feeling of jealousy away.

The emotion must have shown up on Sasuke's face because Shisui was soon on one knee in front of Sasuke as he put a hand on his shoulder.

"Hey, don't worry kid. I'm a hundred percent certain that Itachi would tell you if he had a girlfriend or not." Shisui reassured. "Plus if he did have girlfriend, there would be no way she would ever replace you. You _are_ his precious otouto."

Shisui flashed Sasuke a smile as Sasuke reluctantly smiled back.

Shisui was right, Itachi could never forget about him, right? And he would have told him if he had a girlfriend.

Sasuke was silly to ever think Itachi could forget him.

"Thanks Shisui."

* * *

A few minutes later, Sasuke had made it home. Itachi had come home before he did so he decided to go look for him.

Sasuke found his brother in his room reading some scrolls, his back facing the door. As soon as his eyes fell on Itachi, a wave of possessiveness washed over Sasuke and the urge to glomp his brother came over him.

The young Uchiha walked towards the elder's back and engulfed him in a hug as he buried his face in his brother's soft hair.

Itachi, who didn't seem the least bit surprised, smiled as he put a hand on one of the small arms wrapping around him.

"Welcome home otouto," Itachi greeted. "How was your day?"

Sasuke moved so that his chin was now resting on the top his brother's head.

"The same as every other day," Sasuke replied. "Boring."

Itachi chuckled.

"Boring, huh?"

Sasuke sat down beside his brother and leaned up against him.

The young raven couldn't help but feel the need to ask Itachi about the girl he saw. The feeling was eating him up inside and he didn't know what to do.

He didn't want his brother to think he was jealous or anything, but he desperately needed to know if Itachi had a girlfriend or not.

Sasuke hesitated.

"Ita-nii?"

"Yes?"

"We tell each other everything, right?" Sasuke said trying to find a way to approach the topic.

Itachi looked over at his brother feeling a twinge of worry.

"Of course," Itachi replied. "Why? Is there something bothering you Sasuke?"

Sasuke shook his head.

"No, I'm fine," he answered. "I was just wondering…"

He hesitated, not knowing how to word his question.

"You would tell me if you had a girlfriend, right?"

Itachi raised his eyebrows at the sudden question.

"Sasuke, where is this coming from?" Itachi asked, genuinely curious as to why his otouto was asking him such questions.

The younger of the two shrugged.

"Just wondering," he lied. Hopefully Shisui won't mention anything to him.

Itachi smiled.

"Foolish otouto, I could never keep something like that from you." he said. "You're my brother, of course I would tell you if I had a girlfriend."

The prodigy wrapped his arms around Sasuke and put him his lap.

"Besides, I'm not really interested in finding one right now."

Sasuke smiled as the unfamiliar feeling of jealousy left him. He was stupid to think Itachi would keep something like that from him. They told each other everything, and even if Itachi did have a girlfriend he knew his aniki could _never_ forget about him.

* * *

A gasp escaped Sasuke's lips as he sprang up from his bed, his heart thundering in his chest.

Another nightmare.

Sasuke tried to go back to sleep but his imagination wasn't being kind to him. Horrible thoughts and gruesome pictures swarmed his innocent little mind.

After a couple minutes the little Uchiha gave up on trying to go back to sleep and got out of bed. He needed his brother's warm hugs.

As he approached the elder's room, Sasuke realized that his brother's lights were still on.

 _What is nii-san doing up so late?_ he wondered.

Reading some more scrolls, maybe? He does that sometimes.

Sasuke reached for the door, but his hand abruptly stopped as he heard voices coming from inside.

"Ah, you're so smart Itachi!"

The young raven felt sadness grip his heart when he realized who that voice belonged to.

It belonged to that girl.

Tears silently streamed down Sasuke's face as his arm fell limp beside him.

Itachi had _lied_ to him. He _did_ have a girlfriend. Why else would that brother-stealing person be here in the middle of the night?

Of course Itachi didn't tell him he had a girlfriend, he was just his foolish, insignificant younger brother after all.

Itachi might as well just forget about him.

Sasuke clutched his chest as the thought crossed his mind. His little heart ached terribly.

The little Uchiha silently made his way back to his room, choking down any sobs that rose in his chest.

He felt so alone. Itachi was always there when he had nightmares, giving him hugs and kisses, telling him that everything is okay.

Now he's gone.

 _I guess I'll have to endure the night alone this time._

* * *

A few days passed by and Sasuke hasn't gotten any sleep.

The same nightmare has been keeping him up at night and he can't exactly go to Itachi anymore. The girl is either with him or Sasuke just couldn't bring himself to do it, even though he really wanted to.

So needless to say he was exhausted.

The little Uchiha was currently fighting off sleep as he waited for breakfast.

Itachi walked into the kitchen and watched with amusement as his otouto began nodding off. He sat across from Sasuke and quickly slid his hand in front of him to act as a cushion as Sasuke's head smacked the table.

The child's eyes popped open as he became alert again. He then tensed up as he realized who was sitting in front of him.

"Somebody's tired," Itachi teased as he poked his brother's forehead.

Sasuke touched his forehead, missing the affectionate interaction from his brother. However, he was still salty about his brother lying to him.

"Yeah," he answered vaguely.

Itachi took a moment to take in his otouto's features. His little face was pale and he looked awfully tired. By the looks of it, it seems like he hasn't been getting enough sleep lately.

 _If something is keeping him up at night, then why hasn't he come to me like he always has?_ Itachi wondered.

The prodigy was about to voice his question, but decided to let it go. He'll come to him when he's ready.

"We barely have to time see each other anymore," Itachi said instead.

 _Because you spend all your with_ her _,_ Sasuke thought bitterly.

"So I thought that maybe we could do some training today when you're finished at the academy." The older Uchiha finished.

Sasuke's eyes immediately lit up.

Itachi wants to spend time with _him_?

"Really?" Sasuke asked excitement in his voice.

Itachi nodded.

"Meet me at the Uchiha training grounds after school." he said as he ruffled Sasuke's hair.

Sasuke beamed. "Okay!"

The older Uchiha smiled as he stood up. "Have a good day at the academy otouto."

Sasuke watched as his brother left the room. He then smiled as the saltiness from before washed away.

Itachi hasn't forgotten about him after all. It felt as though a weight has been lifted off his chest and he could finally breathe again. Knowing that his big brother still cared about him made Sasuke's chest fill up with warmth.

He felt terrible for feeling angry towards his brother, but that doesn't change the fact that he lied to him. They would have to talk about that later, but that doesn't matter. Itachi actually has time for Sasuke and that in itself is great.

Sasuke was definitely looking forward to this.

* * *

Sasuke practically sprinted out of the academy once Iruka had dismissed everyone. He was beyond eager to meet up with his brother.

When the training grounds came into sight, his heart leapt with excitement. He slowed down to walk and entered the training grounds.

He looked around for his brother and spotted two figures in the distance. As he drew closer he realized it was Itachi and-

Sasuke stopped.

His face went pale as he resisted the urge to start crying like a pathetic loser, but it was no use as tears began rapidly spilling out his eyes.

Right in front of him stood his brother and that damn girl Sasuke was positive was Itachi's girlfriend.

His heart was hurting in a way he couldn't even describe and he had no idea _why_ he was feeling this way.

Sasuke whirled around and bolted in the other direction, wanting to get as far away from his brother as possible.

He wasn't surprised when he heard Itachi call his name, the sound of Sasuke's footfalls were pretty loud.

But that didn't matter now. Itachi had forgotten about him. He didn't care about Sasuke. He was replaced by his witch of a girlfriend.

Why did he even want to meet up with Sasuke anyway? Was it so he could reveal to him that he actually _has_ a girlfriend and that he was actually lying to his face the whole time?

A choked sob escaped Sasuke's lips as he jumped up on the rooftops. Itachi would eventually catch up to him. He was an ANBU captain, catching a seven year old would be nothing to him.

Tears continued to spill down his face as he ran across the buildings. Sasuke wished he could fall off one these rooftops and break his neck or something just so he wouldn't have to face his brother.

The young Uchiha's heart stopped when he felt himself stumble as miscalculated the distance between two buildings.

Sasuke's eyes widened as he began plummeting down to the ground.

As the saying goes, be careful what you wish for.

* * *

Itachi had just finished his own training and was now waiting for his otouto to get to the training grounds.

If he was being honest, Itachi felt really bad for not spending time with Sasuke lately. Maybe that's what has been keeping Sasuke up at night. If that were the case, it would make Itachi feel even worse.

In the distance, the older Uchiha saw a figure approaching him. He soon realized that it was Imari.

"Imari?"

"Hey Itachi!" Imari said, pep in her voice. "Kakashi senpai sent me to tell you to meet him at headquarters tomorrow morning."

Itachi nodded taking mental note of that.

"Thank you for telling me," Itachi replied. "Is this about the mission in Iwa?"

Imari nodded. "We start tomorrow."

"That was quick." the Uchiha stated.

"It's good thing I know the formations." Imari said gratefully. "Thanks again for going over the formations with me all those nights, I don't know what I would've done without you."

"Just doing my job. You're an important asset for this mission, it wouldn't end well if you didn't know them."

Imari giggled.

"If that were to happen, you and Kakashi senpai would be forced to pull out your mad ninja skills and obliterate any shinobi who dare cross your path." she said dramatically with gestures, earning a small smile from Itachi.

The prodigy's head then jerked to the side when he heard running footsteps.

Was that Sasuke? Why was he running away? He seemed rather upset.

"Sasuke?"

It was no use, he just kept on running. Itachi felt a rush of protectiveness and couldn't suppress the urge to run after him.

"I'm sorry Imari, but I have to go. Thanks again." Itachi bowed his head slightly as a form of thanks then shunshined away.

He ended up in the middle of town and looked around for Sasuke.

He spotted him running across the rooftops, tears streaking his face.

Itachi jumped up on a building and went after him. Why was Sasuke acting like this all of a sudden? Wasn't he supposed to meet him at the training grounds?

The older Uchiha managed to catch up to him pretty quick causing the younger to run faster.

He then felt his heart drop as he watched his baby brother stumble, causing him to fall off the building.

The prodigy didn't waste a second and went full speed to catch the child in his arms, holding him in a protective embrace. He then landed safely in a nearby alleyway.

Itachi let go of his brother and quickly scanned for any injuries. When he found none, he looked straight at him with worried eyes.

"Sasuke, what's wrong?" He asked trying to wipe Sasuke's tears away, but they came down too quickly.

The little Uchiha pushed the hand away and took a step back, his body shaking with sobs.

"Don't touch me."

Itachi was shocked by the sudden statement. "Otouto?"

"Y-you lied to m-me Itachi! You s-said you didn't h-have a g-girlfriend, but y-you lied! You d-don't love me! W-why even bother s-spending t-time with m-me?! You h-have that girl!" The child yelled, tears bitterly falling down his face.

Itachi was taken aback as he stared at his otouto in confusion. "Otouto, I-"

"Why n-nii-san? Why did y-you have t-to f-forget about me?!" Sasuke fell to his knees, his legs unable to hold up themselves. "I m-miss you. You're n-not there w-when I have nightmares anymore. Y-you're too busy w-with _her."_

He put his face in his hands. "It's like I lost my big brother…" he said quietly.

Sasuke's sobs were now mixed with violent hiccups as he continued crying in his hands.

Itachi watched his baby brother break down in front of him, completely at a loss for words. His heart was contorted with pain as he couldn't bare looking at his brother this distraught.

The prodigy had _no_ idea that Sasuke was acting strange because of _this_.

"Otouto,"

Itachi kneeled in front of his brother. His arm reached out to touch him, but he quickly decided against it after what happened earlier.

"Don't say those foolish things. Of course I love you, you're my otouto." Itachi tried, but the child continued sobbing. "I'm sorry you feel this way Sasuke, but I think you got a few things a little mixed up. That girl you're referring to is a new ANBU recruit and it was my job to teach her our formatons quickly. That's all she is, nothing more."

Sasuke's weeping abruptly paused with a small gasp as he took in what Itachi had said.

"I guess I am partly to blame. I haven't been there for you lately and I should have introduced Imari before she came over all those nights." Itachi continued. "I'm really sorry otouto."

The older Uchiha held out his arms, hoping his little brother could find it within him to forgive him.

He then couldn't even begin to explain the relief he felt when he felt that familiar little body hold on to him, clutching his shirt as if his life depended on it. Itachi immediately returned the hug, rubbing circles on his brother's back.

"Ita-nii!" Sasuke choked out, his voice shaky. "I'm _sorry_! I'm sorry!"

"It's okay, it's okay," Itachi reassured. "I'm here now."

"I thought you l-lied to me and replaced me with that girl!" Sasuke sobbed.

"I could never lie to you about that Sasuke." Itachi said as he ran a hand through Sasuke's hair. "And more importantly, you could never be replaced. You're too important to me."

Itachi instinctively tightened his grip around the small, trembling body in his arms.

Sasuke was so innocent, so _fragile_. All he wants to do is protect him from the evils of reality, but it seems impossible. Especially when he himself has such a huge impact on him.

Itachi continued comforting his brother until his violent sobs turned into small sniffles.

"I'm glad you don't have a girlfriend." Sasuke stated suddenly.

The elder chuckled.

"Was somebody jealous?" Itachi asked playfully as he looked at his brother.

Sasuke pouted. "Maybe…" he mumbled

Itachi laughed then kissed his temple.

"I feel delighted otouto. But just remember I'm always going to be here for you, okay?"

Itachi was expecting an answer, but when he didn't get one he found Sasuke fast asleep on his shoulder. He couldn't blame him, with all that crying and sleepless nights his brother must have been exhausted.

Itachi stood up and carried the sleeping child home, making sure his brother wasn't alone the next time he had a nightmare.

* * *

AN: Hey guys! I'm super sorry for the crap ending I will make sure to fix it right away! Stay tuned until then!

Please Review


	16. Chapter 16

AN: Hey! I'm back. Sorry it took so long to update, life kinda got in the way. But here is some Itachi and toddler Sasuke stuff! Enjoy!

Itachi: age 8

Sasuke: age 2

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.

* * *

"Noooooo!"

It was the middle of the afternoon when Itachi had just come home from a mission. As soon as the prodigy walked through the door, he was met with his naked little brother running away from his clearly frustrated mother.

Once the toddler caught sight of his brother, he ran towards him hoping that he would protect him from their evil mother.

Sasuke clutched onto the elder as he hid behind him, his big obsidian eyes peeking out ever so slightly.

Mikoto sighed as she greeted her eldest son. "Welcome home, honey."

Itachi couldn't help the slight smile that appeared on his face as his gaze went from his brother to his mother.

"Hi kaa-san. What's going on?"

Mikoto sighed inwardly.

"Well," she bent down so she was in eye contact with her youngest son. "I've _trying_ to give your brother here a bath for the past hour now, but he is being way too stubborn."

Sasuke simply hid behind his brother even more with a cute pout on his face.

Itachi stifled an amused laugh as he watched the scene unfold before him.

"Come on Sasuke, let kaa-san give you a bath." Mikoto urged.

"No."

Mikoto straightened up as she put her hands on her hips. "He kind of reminds me of a stubborn cat."

Itachi chuckled.

"More like a frightened kitten." he replied as he looked down at Sasuke.

"Wanna give it a shot Itachi?" Mikoto asked. "He'll probably listen to his beloved 'Ita-nii'."

Itachi smiled at the familiar nickname his baby brother had granted him with.

"Okay." Itachi answered.

Mikoto smiled. "Thanks dear. I'll go start dinner."

The prodigy nodded as his mother disappeared into the kitchen.

Itachi looked down at the little toddler clutching onto him and couldn't help but smile.

"Come otouto." he said as he picked up his undressed baby brother and walked towards the bathroom.

* * *

As Itachi entered the bathroom, he shut the door behind him and put the toddler down. Sasuke looked up at his brother with curious eyes, wondering why he was back here.

The older Uchiha squatted down in front of his baby brother so that he was face to face with him.

"I'm going to give you bath now, okay otouto?" Itachi said.

Sasuke's eyes went wide as he heard the word "bath" come out of his brother's mouth.

"No, Ita-nii." Sasuke replied as he shook his head.

Itachi felt his lips twitch upwards slightly as watched Sasuke adorably refuse.

"Why not?" he asked, slight amusement in his voice.

The prodigy frowned as he saw his baby brother's eyes begin to tear up. Sasuke wrapped his arms around his brother as he hid his face in his neck.

"Ita-nii, no. No bath." came the muffled reply.

Itachi sighed as he rested his chin on Sasuke's small shoulder. He returned his brother's embrace and began rubbing circles on his back.

The older Uchiha was genuinely curious as to why his otouto refused to take a bath.

Could it be the temperature of the water?

Itachi slowly pulled away from the hug and poked his brother's forehead. He then gave him a gentle smile before standing up and walking towards the tub.

Itachi dipped his hand in the water, checking the temperature. The water was cold, but that made sense considering the fact that his mother had been struggling with this task for about an hour.

Sasuke watched as his brother drained the water from the tub and filled it up again with warmer water. Itachi made sure that the temperature was just right; not too hot or too cold.

He then turned to Sasuke and picked him up. The older Uchiha sat on the edge of the tub and felt Sasuke squirm a bit, not wanting to be near the pool of water. He brought his arms up around Itachi's neck, trying to get as far away as possible.

"Look otouto," Itachi said gently as he scooped some water in his hand. "Feel how warm the water is."

He offered his hand to his brother and patiently waited for the child to reach out. With much hesitation, Sasuke finally put his tiny hand in Itachi's and felt the warm liquid.

Itachi looked at his brother.

"See? It's not so bad," he said, closing his hand around his brother's. "It's just water."

Sasuke looked back at his brother with large, innocent eyes, causing a smile to tug at the prodigy's lips. His brother was too cute for his own good.

Thinking Sasuke was emotionally ready for his bath now, Itachi lifted him up and was about to put him the tub when he heard a small whimper.

The older Uchiha looked at his baby brother's face and saw nothing but hurt and betrayal in his obsidian eyes.

Itachi frowned, but tried his best to resist the look stopping him from doing his job. He was a shinobi for crying out loud, he should be immune to this stuff.

It took everything in the Uchiha prodigy to ignore the heartbreaking expression on Sasuke's face. It shouldn't take this long to complete such a simple task.

Itachi then felt two little hands lightly grip on to his wrists, causing him to look directly at Sasuke's face.

"Ita-nii…" the toddler whimpered out. He looked like he was on the verge of tears.

He couldn't take it anymore.

The older Uchiha brought his brother to his chest and cradled him protectively.

He wasn't a monster. Itachi couldn't bear the thought of making his baby brother cry. Sasuke thought of him as his safeguard, how could he just betray his trust like that?

Itachi sighed. How can such a small child have control over his emotions so well?

His mind began thinking of other strategies he could try, but most of them would most likely end up with Sasuke crying, which Itachi didn't want.

Itachi was rubbing his baby brother's bare back when an idea came to him. There was no guarantee that it would work, but it was worth a shot.

The older raven put down his brother and began taking off his clothes. Sasuke watched him with wonder in his eyes.

Once Itachi removed his final garments, his stepped into the tub and immersed himself in the warm water. He closed his eyes and exhaled softly.

After a few seconds, the prodigy cracked open one eye to find Sasuke staring at him, his tiny hands grabbing onto the tub.

Itachi smiled, his plan worked.

"Would you like to join me otouto?" Itachi asked, amusement hidden in his voice.

The toddler nodded as he held out his arms, silently asking to be picked up. The older Uchiha obliged and placed him in the tub with him.

He promptly began soaping up his brother and adding shampoo to his raven black hair, before doing so to himself.

After a couple minutes, Itachi rinsed both himself and Sasuke off before getting out of the tub. He swiftly dried himself off and wrapped the towel around his waist.

He then quickly got Sasuke out before the child could start freaking out. Itachi wrapped him in a fluffy towel so he wouldn't get cold and began drying him off.

Once he was done, he looked at his baby brother and offered him a gentle smile.

"That wasn't so bad now, was it Sasuke?"

Itachi earned a pout as the younger of the two buried his face in his brother's neck.

"No Ita-nii," Sasuke replied. "Don't like baths."

Itachi chuckled at the reply.

"Oh yeah?" he said as he poked Sasuke's stomach playfully, earning a small giggle.

The older Uchiha continued tickling his foolish little brother, causing him to break down in laughter.

Sasuke may have a hold over his big brother's emotions, but Itachi was a master of getting his will through, especially when it came to his dear baby brother.

* * *

AN: Sorry for the not good ending, I kinda suck at those. However, I did like this drabble, as short as it is. I think siblings taking baths together is so funny/insanely cute, and it's fun to embarrass them about it when they get older! I hope you enjoyed!

Please Review!


	17. Chapter 17

AN: Heyy. Sorry it's been so long since the last update! I gave up fanfiction for lent and let me tell ya, it was ROUGH. And then after that I had trouble coming up with ideas and once I got some ideas school came along and smacked me with a bunch of assignment crap. But I'm back now with another chapter! Enjoy another saving Sasuke- I mean, enjoy the chapter!

Itachi: age 18

Sasuke: age 12

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.

* * *

It was late morning in the Uchiha household and Sasuke was laying on his bed, extremely bored to death.

Team 7 was supposed to go on a mission today, but Kakashi had cancelled last minute because he had a "very important matter to attend to". However, Sasuke was positive it was just some lame excuse to get away and read some of his perverted books, instead of going on a stupid D-ranked mission again.

The young raven sighed.

He would go and bother his brother, but he was pretty sure he was still asleep.

Sasuke blinked.

Since when did that ever stop him from bothering Itachi? And since when did _Itachi_ start sleeping in?

With this thought in mind, the young Uchiha sprang up from his bed and made his way to his brother's room.

* * *

Sasuke entered Itachi's room without knocking and collapsed on his bed.

He would have knocked, but he knew Itachi didn't mind. The elder rarely knocked on his door anyway, so it seemed to be an unspoken agreement between the two.

"Itaaachii, I'm bored!" Sasuke complained, his face pressed against mattress.

"Good morning to you to otouto." Itachi replied, amused at how childish his little brother was acting. The prodigy was on the ground, reading some scrolls when Sasuke had come in. "I thought you had a mission today?"

"It got cancelled." came the muffled reply. Sasuke turned his face towards his brother. "Have you been reading those all morning?"

The elder nodded as he continued reading through his scroll.

Sasuke stared at him for a moment before rolling over and sighing.

"Come on nii-san, spend time with me." Sasuke whined. "Let's go train or something."

Itachi stopped reading for a second and glanced at his brother with a small smile.

"Actually I take that back. You're probably going to say 'Sorry Sasuke, I'm busy, some other time' or 'Sorry Sasuke, you can die in your own boredom while I finish reading my scrolls'" the younger said as he tried to mimic his big brother's voice.

Itachi couldn't help but chuckle a bit at how juvenile Sasuke could be sometimes. He knew his brother always had a stoic and unreadable demeanor in front of most people, but whenever he is around Itachi, the young raven's facade crumbles and he can't help but act like himself, which the elder really appreciates. And the more Itachi thought about it, the more he realized that he was the same way when he was around his brother as well.

"As a matter of fact otouto, I'm free all day today." Itachi said as he rolled up his scrolls and stood up. "I was already thinking of training with you when you got back from your mission."

Sasuke sat up. "Really?"

"Yes," the elder replied as he poked his brother's forehead. "Now get ready, we leave in 5 minutes."

Sasuke nodded his head vigorously, gave Itachi a quick hug and ran out of the room, eager to spend some time with his brother.

* * *

"So, what are we going to do nii-san?" Sasuke asked once the two brothers had arrived at the training grounds.

"I thought we could do some sparring." Itachi replied.

"Sparring?"

The prodigy nodded. "No sharingan." he said as he got into a defensive stance. "The first one to immobilize their opponent wins."

Sasuke got into a defensive stance as well as he nodded his head.

Just as a single leaf touched the ground, the two brothers lunged at each other and began sparring.

Itachi wanted to test his brother's sparring skills so he didn't want to go all out, but that doesn't mean he'll make it easy for him.

Sasuke threw a punch at Itachi, who effectively ducked and sweeped Sasuke's legs from under him.

Sasuke fell to the ground as Itachi sat on top of him and tried to restrict his movements. However, Sasuke somehow got out of his brother's grasp and turned the tables by reversing the mount so that he was on top.

The young Uchiha thought he had gotten the upper hand before he saw a smile cross Itachi's face.

"What?" Sasuke asked suspiciously.

"Nice boxers Sasuke." Itachi stated, amusement in his voice.

"Wha-?!"

The young Uchiha looked down to find the zipper of his shorts undone. Sasuke shot a look at his brother. "Hey! Did you-ahh!"

Before he could finish his sentence, Sasuke found himself being flipped over Itachi's head, and landed on his back as the elder reversed their position.

Itachi firmly immobilized his arms above him and gave his little brother a triumphant smile.

"I win." he said.

Sasuke pouted. "That's not fair, you distracted me!"

The prodigy chuckled.

"A ninja must see through deception otouto," Itachi replied as he helped his brother up. "But nice escape back there."

"I want a rematch." The little Uchiha said as he redid his zipper.

Itachi poked his brother's forehead, "Maybe later otouto. I want to try some new training on you first."

Sasuke rubbed his forehead. "New training?"

The elder nodded.

"It's similar to Kakashi's bell test, but this time you're by yourself and instead of a bell," Itachi pulled out a small scroll from his pocket. "you have to get this."

Sasuke's eyes narrowed. "There's no time limit or punishment is there?" he asked cautiously. "I get to eat lunch, right?"

Itachi's raised his eyebrows. "Yeah, don't worry there's no time limit or punishment. I'll even buy you onigiri if you manage to win, but keep in mind, I won't go easy on you."

Sasuke smiled as he nodded. "When do we start?"

A moment of silence.

"Now."

And just like that, Sasuke disappeared.

The older Uchiha grinned.

 _Nice move._ He thought.

* * *

Sasuke was hidden in a tree, concealing his chakra as he tried to come up with a plan.

 _I can't come at nii-san head on, not when I'm by myself. And_ _launching a long range attack from here is just plain stupid. Hmm… I don't have very many options._

A few minutes passed before Sasuke had come up with a plan. It was risky, but it was worth a shot.

However, before he could carry it out, he heard leaves rustling in the tree beside him.

His head jerked towards the source of the sound as he expected to see his brother emerge from the tree.

Sasuke's eyes widened. "Tch-!"

* * *

Itachi was still in the clearing, all five senses alert. He wondered what his brother was planning, this would test his judgment and his retrieving skills.

The prodigy waited and waited for Sasuke's next move, but it never came.

Itachi's eyes narrowed. His brother would surely have a plan by now, it's been far too long for him not to. If this were a real mission, the enemy would have already gotten away.

Something about this didn't seem right.

"Sasuke?" Itachi called out. "Your taking you time, huh otouto? Well since you're not making the first move, I will."

The older Uchiha ran soundlessly into the forest as he searched for his brother's chakra signature. He could sense it, but it was very faint. It seems he improved on concealing his chakra, but not enough for Itachi miss it.

The prodigy abruptly stopped running as he caught a whiff of the sharp yet familiar smell of metallic.

Itachi's eyes narrowed.

Who was bleeding? Why?

His head then jerked to the side as he saw Sasuke tumble out of a tree.

The older raven's heart nearly jumped out of his chest as he took a better look at his brother. A giant wound ripped across Sasuke's body as an alarming amount of blood gushed out.

"N-nii-san…help me." he choked out, his body trembling.

It took everything within Itachi to not immediately rush over to him.

This might be a trick.

And if it was, he was _so_ going to get him back after.

The prodigy tried to swallow the lump in his throat as he took a tentative step forward.

"Sasuke..." he said carefully. His heart sank as Sasuke looked up at him, real pain etched on his face.

 _Genjutsu?_ Itachi thought. _No, Sasuke isn't capable of performing genjutsu this realistic yet. And I would have already sensed it when he first activated it._

All the blood in his face drained when he saw his baby brother cough up a frightening amount of blood.

"Ita-nii..!" Sasuke pleaded, tears unwillingly gathering in his eyes.

Screw this.

The older Uchiha rushed towards his sibling, panic flowing through his veins. Sasuke hasn't called Itachi "Ita-nii" since he was nine, and that was after he got badly injured from a shuriken incident.

"Sasuke, what happened?" Itachi asked in an urgent tone as he tried to take a better look at the wound. He quickly unwrapped the bandages around his ankles and put them around his brother's chest to try and stop the bleeding.

The young Uchiha grabbed a hold of his brother's arm. "Nii-san, we can't stay here." he breathed out.

Before Itachi could question him, he felt unfamiliar chakra signatures surround their area.

Itachi's eyes narrowed.

He quickly got Sasuke on his back and shunshined to the clearing in the training ground.

The enemies were hot on their heels as Itachi ran out of the Uchiha training grounds. He would try to get rid of them, but he had to get Sasuke to safety first.

"Are they the ones who did this to you, Sasuke?" he asked, fury hidden in his voice.

Sasuke's head was resting on his brother's shoulder as he gave him a small nod.

"Stay with me, okay otouto?" Itachi said as he lightly patted his cheek. He didn't like how pale Sasuke has gotten in such a short amount of time. "No falling asleep."

"Hai," Sasuke answered weakly.

Itachi hadn't quite made it out of the Uchiha compound before he ran into Shisui.

"Itachi!" Shisui called.

"Shisui?"

The body flicker ran alongside his friend. "Itachi, several ninja's have infiltrated the compound." he informed. "They seem to be searching for you."

"So I've noticed." the prodigy said as he glanced over at Sasuke.

Shisui frowned.

"What happened to Sasuke?" he asked.

"I'm not quite sure myself," Itachi answered. "But I'm on my way to the hospital."

Before Shisui could reply, ninja suddenly surrounded the three Uchiha.

"Damn," Shisui said with a grin. "They're fast. Go on Itachi, I got this."

Shisui pulled out a kunai and got into a defensive stance.

"But Shisui-"

"Don't worry 'tachi!" Shisui flashed him a grin. "This will be easy. Plus, Sasuke isn't looking too good."

The prodigy nodded. "Thanks Shisui."

* * *

Itachi was running across the rooftops as fast as he could. So far, he hasn't sensed any enemy ninja.

A chill went up the prodigy's spine as he felt a sudden wetness seep through his shirt. Realizing it was Sasuke's blood, he looked over to his brother who was about to pass out.

"Hey, Sasuke," Itachi said gently as patted his hip. "I know it's hard otouto, but you have to stay awake."

"I'm trying," Sasuke answered wearily. "It's not that easy."

"I know otouto, we're almost at the-"

"Well, I assume you must be Itachi Uchiha?"

Itachi stopped running and pulled out a kunai in a matter of a second. He watched as a shinobi landed in front of him.

"Can I help you?" Itachi asked as his eyes narrowed. Just from the killing intent this guy was giving off, it was obvious that he was behind all this.

The shinobi scoffed,

"Yes actually, you can." he grinned. "Do you remember a shinobi by the name of Sora Wajihara?"

The prodigy's memory was flawless. Sora Wajihara was a rogue shinobi he was ordered to assassinate in order to prevent a full out war from raging. On top of that, his reasons for war were exceedingly absurd.

"I do recall a shinobi of that name." Itachi replied, his tone dark.

"Good. I'll have you know Sora meant a lot to me." The shinobi said with a pained smirk. "He was my precious younger brother after all."

Itachi focused his gaze on the shinobi as he instinctively tightened his grip on Sasuke.

Sasuke on the other hand winced and clutched the cloth of his brother's shirt as a wave of pain came crashing down on him.

The enemy smirked. "Oh, how the tables have turned. Now it seems like _your_ brother is on the brink of death."

The shinobi's gaze darkened.

"Allow me to finish him off."

The shinobi lunged at Itachi causing the older Uchiha to jump back to avoid the attack.

This wasn't good.

Judging by the way the shinobi carelessly lunged at Itachi head on, he clearly didn't have much fighting experience, making him an easy opponent. However, having Sasuke with him restricted Itachi from fighting this guy fully, and also means he doesn't have much time. Sasuke had completely bled through his bandages.

This was going to be difficult...

After dodging countless attacks, Itachi found an opening.

The shinobi launched a fire jutsu at Itachi and after doing so realized he was gone.

He looked around him trying to find the teen only to be met with the malicious gaze of the sharingan.

"Being an older brother myself, I can't say I don't somewhat concur with your thoughts." Itachi's dark voice was laced with malice. "However, you're awfully brave to have dared lay a finger on my brother in hopes of seeking vengeance."

The shinobi stood there frozen, unable to move a muscle.

With a final scowl, Itachi put the shinobi under a genjutsu that would keep him busy until the ANBU finds and takes the bastard into custody.

* * *

Sasuke slowly opened his eyes and found himself in a hospital room.

The last thing he remembered was the beginning of a battle his brother had with a shinobi. He must have passed out at some point during the fight.

The young Uchiha looked over to see his brother sitting by his bedside as he glanced out the window, his face grim.

"Well, this is one way to overcome boredom." Sasuke stated bluntly, his voice barely above a whisper.

Itachi's attention immediately fell on Sasuke as he realized his brother had woken up

"Otouto," he said as he leaned over. "How are you feeling?"

The young Uchiha shrugged slightly. "I've been better."

A ghost of a smile graced Itachi's features as his face softened.

"What happened?" Sasuke asked.

The elder sighed.

"Long story short, shinobi infiltrated the compound because someone was seeking vengeance against me." Itachi said as he ran his hand through his brother's hair. "But he wasn't very successful with that. Although, he was somewhat." He glanced over at Sasuke's bandaged chest.

Sasuke's averted his gaze as silence fell between the two brothers.

"I'm sorry nii-san," Sasuke suddenly blurted out.

Itachi's gaze snapped back to his brother in confusion.

"I was useless the whole time. I was merely a liability for you." Sasuke continued, frustration in his voice. "If I wasn't so weak, I would have been able to help out. It would have been easier to handle if I wasn't such a burden. This my fault."

The older Uchiha stared at the younger for a moment before he leaned back on the chair.

"You're right," Itachi stated as he crossed his arms and closed his eyes. "It's all _your_ fault that you got injured and therefore made yourself a _liability._ "

The sarcasm was clear in his voice.

But regardless, Sasuke's face fell as he accepted his brother's words.

Itachi opened one eye to take a glance at his brother, only to find a dejected expression on his face.

The prodigy sighed.

"Sasuke," he began. "None of this was your fault. If it's anyone's, it's my fault for triggering the situation. You getting hurt isn't because you were weak. You couldn't have known there were enemy ninja around."

"Yeah, but I was such a big burden." Sasuke replied, guilt in his voice. "If I wasn't bleeding all over you, you could have dealt with the situation better. You could have gotten hurt because of me."

Itachi couldn't help but smile a bit at his brother's concern even if it was unnecessary.

"But I wasn't, was I? Sure, the circumstances weren't as easy as they could have been, but you're way more important than having something be easier." The elder explained, hoping Sasuke would see it in his perspective. "It's my job as your brother to keep you safe. You were no liability. So, don't worry otouto."

The young Uchiha closed his eyes and sighed, somewhat relieved by his brother's words.

"Fine," he finally said and then smiled. "Thanks aniki."

Itachi returned the smile as he put his hand on Sasuke's head.

"Anytime otouto." he said as he ruffled his brother's hair gently.

Itachi was sure Sasuke had fallen asleep, but he soon felt something tugging at his pocket. He looked down to see Sasuke's pale hand rummaging through it.

He watched as the young Uchiha pulled out the small scroll from earlier, his eyes still closed.

Sasuke brought the scroll up to his brother's face and waved it in front of him.

He opened one eye and grinned. "A ninja must see through deception, nii-san." His grin grew wider. "You owe me onigiri."

Before he knew it, Itachi was laughing along with his foolish little brother. He had to admit, he did not see that coming, but it's ok. He'll just get him back by somehow getting Sasuke to buy him some dango when he gets better.

* * *

AN: And finally done! Sorry for the crappy ending and this whole drabble, especially the "fight scene". I wanted to get something out to you guys and this was what I came up with. And I know Sasuke is some sort of "Damsel in distress" again, but I don't know, I just really like writing these kinds of stories :) Once again sorry for not posting in a while, I'll be sure to try and get back into things now that school is almost over. I hope you enjoyed!

Please Review!


	18. Chapter 18

AN: Hey guys! Here's another chapter for you! This chapter is a bit weird….. I've been reading some fics and some authors describe Sasuke's hair to be a really, really, really dark shade of blue when it's actually just black. But when I look at some pictures of him I can see what they mean. So this chapter is really just based on that. Enjoy!

Itachi: age 18

Sasuke: age 12

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

* * *

Ever since Sasuke had become a genin, Itachi would always greet his brother when he came home from a mission.

Of course there were times when Itachi would be on a mission himself. But if he was home, the older Uchiha would make it his duty to greet his baby brother when he got back.

He's seen his brother come home with scratches, bruises, cuts and countless other injuries, and of course Itachi was quick to tend to him if their mother didn't get to him first.

Most of the time though, Sasuke comes home unscathed and shows gratitude whenever the elder greets him.

There was even a time when he came home wearing cat ears. And as embarrassing as it was for him, considering that he forgot to take them off after the mission, Itachi couldn't help but adore his brother's cuteness.

And that still remains as one of his favourite memories.

It was now past noon in the Uchiha household and Itachi was home by himself. His parents were out doing errands and his little brother was out on a mission.

The older Uchiha had just finished a list of chores his mother had made him do and was currently in the living room reading through some scrolls.

He was just in the middle of finishing one when he heard the front door open.

The elder instantly knew it was Sasuke who had come home as his sharp senses picked up the familiar chakra signature.

He was expecting his brother to announce his arrival as per usual, but it never came.

This perked Itachi's attention as he got up and headed towards the door.

The prodigy came just in time to see Sasuke gently place his shoes down and begin trying to creep his way down the hall.

However, this wasn't what caught the elder's attention.

What caught his attention was the hood his little brother pulled over his head. It was as if he were trying to hide something.

The little Uchiha wasn't even halfway down the hall yet before he was stopped.

"Sasuke?" Itachi said as he watched Sasuke stop in his tracks and visibly tense up.

This only made Itachi even more suspicious.

The younger of the two slowly turned around to face his brother as he still clutched on to his hood.

"Nii-san! I-I didn't know you were home." Sasuke stammered as he avoided eye contact.

Yeah right. He is definitely hiding something.

And Itachi, being the prying older brother he was, was going to find out what.

"What are you doing otouto?" The Uchiha prodigy asked as he moved closer towards his sibling.

"Nothing!" the small raven said as he shook his head. "I was just going to the bathroom."

Sasuke was never really good at hiding things from Itachi. Towards other people he was great, but never with his brother.

The younger Uchiha looked up at Itachi innocently as the elder stared at him.

"What's under your hood?" Itachi asked as he raised an eyebrow.

"My head." Sasuke replied.

The older Uchiha resisted the urge to face palm. "Very funny otouto."

But then it dawned on him. What if Sasuke was hiding a head injury? He knew his brother would be stupid enough to do that.

Okay, no more playing around.

"Show me what's under your hood Sasuke." Itachi said as reached for it.

The little Uchiha quickly took a step back as his brother's hand just barely grazed his hood.

"Leave me alone nii-san. I only have to pee." he said as he turned back towards the hall.

Itachi sighed.

"Sure you do." he mumbled.

Before Sasuke could take a step, Itachi suddenly appeared in front of him and poked him in the forehead. In the second of confusion, the prodigy had also managed to pull his brother's hood off and saw a flash of blue before the younger quickly pulled the hood back over his head.

Sasuke gripped his hood tightly as Itachi looked at him in confusion.

"Sasuke, did I just see blue?" the elder asked puzzled.

"No..." the little Uchiha murmured.

The older Uchiha tried pulling back the hood again but his brother refused to let go.

"Sasuke…" Itachi warned gently.

Sasuke sighed.

"Hai." he replied obediently as he let go of his hood.

Itachi's eyes widened as he witnessed what was in front of him.

"Otouto, what _happened_?" he asked, slight amusement in his voice, but mostly shock.

Because in front of him stood his brother, with a full head of _blue hair_.

The young Uchiha shut his eyes tightly. "Please don't laugh."

The prodigy managed to resist the urge to break down in laughter for his brother's sake, but he couldn't stop the slight tremble in his shoulders as it tried to burst out.

Sasuke's face turned into a light shade of red as he sighed.

"I'm sorry Sasuke," Itachi said as he hugged his brother. "I won't laugh, I promise."

"I can feel you laughing nii-san." came Sasuke's muffled reply as he returned the hug.

"Sorry," the elder stated as he pulled back to look at his brother's face, a smile still on his lips. "I thought you were injured or something. What happened?"

Sasuke scowled.

"Naruto happened." he said angrily. "The dobe did it while he was on his shift for night guard and I was stupid enough to fall asleep."

Itachi's face grew wary. "He didn't bleach your hair, did he?"

"He better not have. He said that it should come out after I wash my hair, but I don't trust the stupid bastard." Fear suddenly appeared on Sasuke's face as he looked up at his brother. "What if it doesn't come out Itachi?! I don't want blue hair! Kaa-san and tou-san are going to kill me!"

The older Uchiha put his hands on his brother's shoulders to reassure him. "It's okay, don't worry. I'll help you. Kaa-san and tou-san won't be home for a few hours so we have time."

Sasuke hugged his brother. "Thank you aniki."

"Anytime otouto," Itachi replied as he ruffled his blue hair. "Come on. Let's try washing it out."

* * *

The Uchiha brothers spent several hours in the bathroom trying to wash the dye out of Sasuke's hair. They had managed to turn the vibrant blue to a more toned down blackish blue.

Sasuke stared at himself in the mirror as Itachi ran his fingers through his spiky hair, searching for any more blue. Unfortunately, there was still a lot left.

"How much dye did he use otouto?" The elder asked incredulously as he continued examining his brother's hair.

The young Uchiha rubbed his hands over his face. "I don't know. Knowing the stupid idiot, he probably used every last drop he had."

Itachi sighed inwardly.

"Well, the good news is that he didn't bleach your hair." he said as he looked at Sasuke through the mirror. "But the bad news is that the dye is leaving a blue tint to your hair."

A glower slowly made its way on Sasuke's face.

"Ugh! This is so _stupid_!" he yelled as he stormed out of the bathroom, Itachi following behind him.

"Sasuke, where are you going?"

The young Uchiha gritted his teeth. "I'm going to _kill_ Naruto."

Sasuke almost made it out the door before Itachi grabbed his waist, stopping him from leaving.

"Okay. Let's not do that," The elder reasoned as he turned his sibling to face him. "You're only going to make things worse."

Sasuke huffed as he let his head fall on his brother's chest.

"This isn't fair," he complained. "I'd love to see that idiot wake up with _green_ in his stupid blonde hair. Have fun getting that out."

Itachi put a hand on his brother's head as he let out a small laugh.

"Now I admit what Naruto did wasn't something desirable. But fighting fire with fire won't do anything for you otouto." he said gently.

"Kaa-san and tou-san are going to murder me," the little Uchiha said as he looked up at his brother, anxeity rising in his chest. "What am I going to do?"

Itachi felt a pang of guilt as he saw panic in his baby brother's eyes. Their parents would definitely freak out if they saw Sasuke with blue hair, and without a doubt punish him. But it wasn't his fault that his hair was dyed, his poor brother doesn't deserve to be punished.

So being Sasuke's older brother, it's his job to protect him.

The prodigy held his brother's shoulders. "Hey, it's okay. I'm here to help you. The blue isn't as noticeable as it was before. If we wash it a few more times it's most likely to come out, so don't worry."

The young Uchiha stared at his brother for a second before glomping him. He couldn't express how much gratitude he felt towards his big brother. Itachi could have just left him to fend for himself and let him get punished by their parents, but he loved Sasuke too much to do that.

"I love you nii-san," Sasuke said as he nuzzled his face in his older brother's chest. "I would literally be dead if you weren't home."

"I know. You're lucky I didn't have a mission." Itachi stated as he smiled warmly, returning the hug. "Now come on, let's try washing it again."

* * *

The two brothers finished just before their parents got home.

Sasuke's hair almost looked exactly how it was, but there was a very light tint of blue that refused to wash out. Luckily for them though, the tint was barely noticeable and very easy to miss.

The young teen tried avoiding his parents for the night, but he couldn't escape the inevitable event of dinner.

So there he sat at the table, trying his best to not draw any attention to himself as he ate his dinner at a quick pace.

Thankfully Itachi had managed to grab their parent's attention by telling them about an upcoming mission he has, leaving Sasuke out of their radar. Regardless, the little Uchiha was still very paranoid that they would notice something. No matter how miniscule the difference was, his parents were still shinobi. Sasuke can only hope Itachi can keep their attention until he finishes his dinner...

"Sasuke."

Sasuke froze as his body tensed up. He wasn't the only one since he felt his brother react the same way, but very discreetly.

The young Uchiha slowly fixed his gaze on his mother who had called him.

"Yes kaa-san?" he said trying to hide his nervousness.

Mikoto examined her son with curious eyes. "There's… something different about you. I just can't tell what."

Sasuke clenched his fists under the table. _Damn!_

Fugaku then began scanning his youngest son as he also caught his attention. "Yes, now that you mention it, there is something different about him. What do you think Itachi?"

Sasuke looked at his brother with pleading eyes.

The older Uchiha shrugged as he took a look at his sibling. "I don't see anything different about him." he said nonchalantly. "He is getting older, maybe you're noticing his face growing more mature for the first time."

Mikoto and Fugaku looked at each other before staring at their youngest son again.

"Yes, maybe that's it." Fugaku finally said.

 _Yes! Thank you nii-san!_ Sasuke thought as he nodded at his parents.

"For a second, I thought his hair might have looked blue!" Mikoto stated, causing herself, Fugaku and Itachi to laugh.

Man, he was good at this.

Sasuke felt his face flush slightly as he tried laughing along.

"I met a shinobi with blue hair once," Fugaku said as he put more food on his plate. "And I cannot explain how _bad_ it looked. He looked like some sort of clown that belonged in a fruit basket."

Both Fugaku and Mikoto began laughing again while Itachi tried to hold back a few chuckles as he looked at his brother whose face was bright red.

Sasuke abruptly stood up from his seat.

"Thanks for the food," he muttered, trying to hide the extreme embarrassment he felt.

Itachi chuckled lightly as the younger shot him a look. He put his dishes away and left the kitchen plotting and scheming.

Because the next time he sees Naruto, that boy is _dead_.

* * *

AN: Sorry for such a late update and making it really short at that. I've editing old chapters so that's been taking up some of my time, but feel free to re-read some of them! And although this chapter was weird, I kind of liked it. I hope you guys enjoyed!

Please Review!


	19. Chapter 19

AN: Hey guys, long time no see… first I want to apologize for not posting posting in such a long time. School has been in the way of everything so I can't get to writing as much anymore. However I'll do my best to update as much as I can! I've been really into this fic about Shisui and the Uchiha brothers so this chapter is kinda dedicated to him. Enjoy!

Itachi: age 13

Sasuke: age 7

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

* * *

Small, quiet feet wandered down the hall as they made their way to their destination. It was early in the morning and Sasuke was _certain_ that his big brother was still asleep.

Now was his chance.

The young Uchiha slowly opened the door to Itachi's room and quietly closed it behind him as he entered.

He clutched the can of whipped cream in his hands closer to him as he quietly made his way to his brother's sleeping form.

Today was the day. The day that Sasuke would finally trick his flawless older brother.

Now don't get him wrong. Sasuke loves Itachi dearly, but he would love to be able to trick his perfect older brother at least _one_ time in his life.

The young raven carefully examined his brother, making sure that he was _really_ asleep. Itachi has a tendency to wake up as soon as someone touches his door knob, but still remains as if he were still asleep.

Sasuke knows from experience.

The older Uchiha's lips were slightly parted as deep, even breaths came in and out.

Sasuke smiled. He's definitely asleep.

His brother looked so at peace when he was sleeping. Too bad he was about to ruin it.

After finally confirming that Itachi was asleep, the young Uchiha quietly opened the can of whipped cream and carefully put some in one of Itachi's hands that was closest to his face.

He was afraid that his brother might go all ANBU mode on him once the whipped cream came into contact with his hand, but Itachi stayed perfectly still.

Now for the final step.

Sasuke pulled on his sleeve and carefully reached over to lightly tickle his brother's face.

One, two, three…

"Ah!" The little raven yelled in surprise as his face got covered in whipped cream.

He saw a smirk form on his older brother's face as he opened one eye.

"Nice try otouto." Itachi said in amusement.

Before Sasuke had even touched Itachi's face, the older raven swiftly slid his whipped cream covered hand on his little brother's face. Thus successfully counter attacking his little trick.

"No fair, nii-san!" Sasuke pouted. "I thought you were asleep!"

Itachi chuckled.

"I was," he replied. "Until I heard you coming down the hall."

The child sighed as he sat on the edge of the bed.

"I thought I had you that time." he muttered.

Itachi playfully poked his brother's stomach with his clean hand. "Better luck next time otouto."

Sasuke laid down on his side and rested his head on his brother's stomach.

"Are you busy today?" he asked innocently as he started wiping away the whipped cream on his face.

Itachi sighed. "Yeah, I am."

Sasuke frowned.

"I thought you didn't have any missions today."

"I don't," The older raven began running his clean hand through his brother's hair. "But Shisui wanted to train with me today."

The young Uchiha suppressed an eye roll.

Sasuke likes Shisui. He's almost like a second older brother. But sometimes he can't help but feel somewhat irritated whenever Shisui takes Itachi away from him.

The prodigy saw his brother's reaction and smiled sadly.

"But I can spend time with you when I get home." he reasoned.

Sasuke smiled.

"Okay." he replied as he sat up.

There was a moment of silence before a mischievous grin grew on the young Uchiha's face.

He turned to his brother. "Guess what nii-san?"

Itachi was skeptical. "What?"

Sasuke quickly wiped his whole face and wiped the excess whipped cream on his big brother's own face.

The young raven watched as his brother's face went from wide eyes to evil smirk in one second and took that as his cue to bolt out of the room.

Itachi, who had been laying down the whole time, swiftly got out of bed in one fluid motion and chased after his foolish little brother.

* * *

"Ah, the whipped cream wake up prank huh?"

It was only a couple hours into the day before Itachi had met up with Shisui.

They had just finished some training and were now resting at their usual spot near the Uchiha training grounds.

The prodigy had told Shisui about Sasuke's little prank that morning and had earned a cheeky grin from his friend.

"It was a good try," Itachi replied. "But I made sure I got my revenge."

Shisui chuckled. "You better watch out, he's gonna get you one of these days."

"That's okay." The prodigy said easily. "I'll just get him back afterwards."

The body flicker laid his body on the grass and looked up at the sky. "How old is the brat now anyway? Four?"

"Seven." Itachi corrected.

Shisui waved his hand at his friend. "Same thing."

Itachi smirked.

"Anyways, what's with the whole not mandatory duty thing tomorrow?" The body flicker asked.

The prodigy sighed.

The Hokage had requested extra shinobi earlier this week to be on duty tomorrow. It was quite unusual considering that it was optional duty, not mandatory.

"I'm not exactly sure, but I think it's about those spies who infiltrated the village. I think they're just looking for extra shinobi to scope out specific areas so they find them faster." The younger teen answered. "And knowing my father, this will probably be mandatory for us."

Shisui groaned. "Man, this week is going to suck! First the branch meeting, now this?" He sighed. "I'd rather eat dirt than do some boring mission."

"How appetizing," Itachi stated. "But I thought the branch meeting was next week?"

"It's been moved." Shisui complained. "You know how boring those meetings are? I have no one to talk to. The only people there are old geezers and annoying brats. Maybe I can skip this one-" he interrupted himself as an idea hit him. He slowly fixed his gaze on his cousin and offered him a smile. "Hey Itachi-"

"No." The younger said quickly.

Shisui made a face. "Awe come on! Come with me! Do you know how big a deal it would be if the clan head's son came to the _branch_ meeting?"

"No." Itachi repeated.

"You're killing me 'tachi!" Shisui whined. "You don't want me to die of boredom, do you?"

The prodigy shrugged.

"That's harsh." The body flicker stood up and looked down squarely upon his cuel cousin. "Then let's make a bet." He said as he crossed his arms.

"A bet?" The younger teen asked.

Shisui nodded. "You and I both know we're going to fly through tomorrow's mission. So how about if I manage to finish before you, you have to come with me to the branch meeting. But if you finish before me, you don't have to come and I'll have to buy you dango." He held out his hand. "Is it a bet?"

Itachi thought for a moment before grabbing Shisui's hand and nodding. He's gonna get some dango out of this, so why not?

The body flicker smirked.

"Alright then. I guess I'll see you at the branch meeting."

* * *

Sasuke was on his way back home from the training grounds as exhaustion slightly weighed down his small frame.

He was really hoping he could train with Itachi today, but obviously that wasn't the case.

The young Uchiha was about to reach his house when he saw Shisui standing by the front door.

"Sasuke!" Shisui called with a wave once he saw his little cousin.

"Shisui?" Sasuke said confused. "What are you doing here? Isn't nii-san with you?"

The body flicker gave his baby cousin a smirk. "I'm here to talk to you, brat."

Sasuke scowled. The old man is calling him names again.

"Why?" the small Uchiha asked bluntly, annoyance in his voice. He looked towards his house. "Is nii-san home?"

Shisui shook his head. "He had stuff to do at the Hokage's office." he replied. "Anyways, I need your help with something."

Sasuke raised his eyebrows. "You need _my_ help? With what?"

Shisui sighed. "So I made a bet with your brother-"

"You're dumb." Sasuke interrupted with a small chuckle.

"Hey punk, I'm your older cousin. Don't call me dumb." The body flicker scolded as he pointed an accusing finger at his brat of a cousin. Sasuke simply made a defiant face which Shisui chose to ignore. "Anyways, you and I both know that Itachi is pretty good at what he does. So there's a big chance that I might lose this bet, which is not good. So I need your help."

Sasuke scoffed. "And why would I help _you_? If anything, I want nii-san to win your bet. Not you." The young Uchiha walked past his cousin, towards the front door. "Nice try."

Shisui faked a sighed. "That's too bad. I guess I'll have to _trick_ Itachi on my own then."

As if on cue, the body flicker heard his little cousin's footsteps abruptly stop and couldn't help but smirk. His plan worked.

"You're going to trick nii-san?" Sasuke asked, slight interest in his voice.

Shisui turned around to face the small Uchiha and nodded. "Face it kid, I know all about you wanting to trick your brother. This is your chance."

Sasuke stared at Shisui as he tried to think. He doesn't want to get in Itachi's way of winning a bet, that would make him a terrible younger brother.

But then again, this might be his _only_ chance to actually fool his perfect older brother…

"What do you say brat? You in?" the body flicker asked.

The young Uchiha hesitated before looking at his cousin.

"I'm in. But what's your plan? Nii-san won't get _hurt_ , will he?" Sasuke asked cautiously.

Shisui laughed nervously. "No, of course not." The body flicker averted his gaze. "But you might have to."

Sasuke made a face. "What?!"

"Okay just hear me out-" Shisui began.

"What do you mean?! I don't want to get hurt over this!" Sasuke said angrily.

"Just listen," the body flicker said. The little Uchiha crossed his arms as he grudgingly obliged. "When a five year old like you falls and hurts yourself, what do you do?"

Sasuke glared at his cousin. "I'm seven."

Shisui rolled his eyes. "Whatever, just answer the question."

"I get up and deal with it." The young Uchiha answered bluntly.

Shisui sighed. "No, no, no. Your supposed _cry_. What's wrong with you?"

Sasuke huffed in annoyance. "This is making no sense."

Shisui smirked.

"Don't worry, just trust me on this one."

* * *

It was the next day and Itachi was just about to head out on his mission.

He had woken up to a vacant home this morning which was quite odd. He figured that his parents must be out doing errands, but wasn't sure where his little brother had gone to.

It was pretty early in the morning and Itachi always wakes up before Sasuke does when he has a mission, so it was strange that his brother wasn't home.

Had he gone with their parents perhaps?

Itachi sighed as he put on his shoes. He couldn't believe he agreed to turn this mission into a bet with Shisui.

At least he's going to get dango today.

The prodigy stepped out the front door and began making his way to the Hokage Mansion faster than he normally would.

Itachi was just a little ways away from his house when he heard a familiar little voice call him.

"Nii-san!"

The older Uchiha stopped as he turned around.

"Sasuke?" he said confused.

"Nii-san!" Sasuke called out again. He was running full speed towards his brother.

Itachi watched as his brother came running towards him, trying to close the very large gap between them. Where the heck did he go so early in the morning?

Sasuke was still far from him when the prodigy's trained eyes saw his brother stumble on his own feet causing his heart to drop somewhat.

He wanted to act on impulse and try to catch his baby brother, but he wouldn't have made it. So his was forced to watch Sasuke stumble to the ground as his small, little frame ruthlessly skidded on the pavement.

Itachi suppressed a wince.

The prodigy waited anxiously for Sasuke to get up and continue running towards him again so he could tell him that he was okay, but instead he saw his brother slowly sit up from the ground.

Worry began nagging at Itachi's heart. He was okay right?

The older Uchiha was about to call out to Sasuke before he saw tears rapidly falling down his baby brother's cheeks.

Itachi took in a sharp breath as he ran towards his brother. He kneeled in front of Sasuke and immediately searched for injuries.

"Are you okay otouto?" Itachi asked worriedly. "Did you hurt yourself?"

Sasuke shook his head as he quickly wiped his eyes. "I'm fine." he answered, immediately grimacing in pain afterwards.

The older Uchiha took a better look at his brother's face and found a cut along his left cheek. He then took his right arm and found several wounds that had formed there as well as wounds on both his knees.

Itachi wiped away his little brother's tears that still continued to fall before turning around and motioning for him to get on his back. "Let's go otouto. I'll take you home."

Sasuke sniffed miserably. "But you-"

"Come Sasuke." The older Uchiha interrupted gently. "I don't want your cuts to get infected."

Sasuke obliged as he sorely got onto his older brother's back. Itachi then stood up as he began making his way back to their house.

The older Uchiha couldn't help but sigh inwardly. Shisui was probably halfway done the mission by now, meaning he's going to end up attending the branch meeting after all.

It also means no dango.

But Itachi quickly brushed it off. Sasuke needed him. He couldn't just leave him for some lousy bet. What kind of older brother would he be if he did?

Maybe he can talk his way out of going instead…

* * *

Sasuke was sitting on the kitchen counter as he watched his brother put away the med kit.

His head hung as guilt had been eating him alive all morning.

The little Uchiha had woken up extra early and hid in a hiding place Shisui had showed him the other day. As soon as he saw his brother walk out of the house, he had followed exactly what Shisui had told him to do.

The crying part wasn't as hard as he thought it would be, even though it did made him feel like a huge baby. But all in all, the whole plan was a success.

He actually tricked his flawless older brother.

Then why did he feel so terrible?

Is it because he used someone else's plan? Or... is it because he took advantage of Itachi's feelings and made the bet unfair to him?

Sasuke grimaced as he clenched his fists in frustration towards himself.

What kind of younger brother was he? How could he just betray Itachi's trust like that? And to top it all off, he was covered in cuts and scratches now. How _stupid_ could he be?

The young Uchiha sighed as he looked up from his lap. A small noise of surprise then escaped his lips as he saw his brother's face directly in front of his own.

"What's wrong?" Itachi asked. "Are you still in pain?"

Guilt clenched Sasuke's heart even tighter. "Uh, no I'm okay. Thank you for taking care of me nii-san."

The older Uchiha continued to stare at his brother, his position unchanging.

"You're lying." he suddenly said.

Sasuke bit the inside of his cheek. He wanted to tell him. No, he _needed_ to tell him. This whole thing isn't right.

But would Itachi be mad at him? He hasn't ever been mad at Sasuke before. He wouldn't be able to handle having his precious older brother angry at him.

But no, he needs to do the right thing. Sasuke brought this upon himself. He deserves any punishment that might come his way, no matter how terrible it may be.

The younger Uchiha took a deep breath. "I'm sorry Ita-nii." he blurted out. "This whole thing wasn't an accident. I fell on purpose. Shisui told me about your bet and asked me to help him win so I can finally trick you. I didn't feel good about it, but I was being stupid and followed the plan he made against you. And now because of that, your losing your bet just to take care of me even though I clearly don't deserve it 'cause I'm a bad brother and I don't deserve your love and care, and you should just kick me out into the streets."

Sasuke inhaled deeply after saying all that in one breath and bowed his head. "I'm so sorry Ita-nii."

There was a moment of silence before the young Uchiha heard an amused sigh come from his brother.

He then felt Itachi lift his chin so that he was looking at him. Sasuke braced himself for what was to come.

"First of all," Itachi began lightly. "I'm not going to kick you out into the streets. Second of all, _never_ listen to Shisui. Ever."

The younger Uchiha looked at his brother in surprise. "So you're not mad at me?"

"No, just a little disappointed." The elder replied.

Sasuke sighed. "I'm sorry nii-san. I didn't mean to make you lose your bet. I promise not to do it ever again."

"Sasuke, I'm not disappointed because I lost the bet." Itachi stated. "I'm disappointed because you resolved to hurting yourself for a trivial trick." The prodigy lightly poked his brother's cheek playfully. "Look at you, you're all scratched up."

Sasuke pouted. "Yeah, Shisui's plan was dumb. I wish I hadn't listened to him."

The young Uchiha saw a smirk form on his brother's face.

"I have an idea." Itachi suddenly said. "And I need your help otouto."

* * *

Shisui was back at the usual spot him and Itachi usually meet at.

He had completed his mission in under an hour and was now waiting for his cousin to finish it as well.

Shisui smirked. It looked like Sasuke was able to pull his plan off, meaning he won the bet.

Now Shisui wasn't a bad person so he couldn't help but feel a little bad for cheating. But since he won, he's not gonna be alone during the branch meeting and he might as well buy Itachi the dango anyway, so it's kind of a win-win situation.

He should also tell him about the plan he came up with as well just to be fair.

The body flicker continued to wait and it wasn't until two hours later when he felt his cousin's presence finally arrive.

"I told you I would win Itachi." Shisui said out loud, playful arrogance in his voice. "They don't call me 'Shunshin no Shisui' for nothing."

He turned around to shoot Itachi smirk. His expression soon disappeared when he saw his cousin's grim looking face.

The body flicker walked towards Itachi. "Hey, what's wrong? Did something happen during the mission?"

Itachi shook his head, his face unchanging.

"I didn't do the mission." he replied, his voice devoid of any emotion.

Shisui was confused. "Why not?" Worry began building up in his chest.

"Sasuke is in the hospital." The prodigy finally said.

Shisui's blood stopped cold. "What? What happened?"

Itachi sighed. "When I was on my way to the Hokage building, I saw Sasuke running towards me. It seemed like he wanted to tell me something, but he tripped and hit his head on the ground. Hard." he explained. "He passed out and I rushed him to the hospital. The doctors say it isn't looking good. He hasn't woken up since."

Shisui clenched his jaw. He remembered telling the brat to make his fall realistic, but not _that_ realistic. Guilt suffocated him. This was all his fault!

"Is he going to be okay?" Shisui asked worriedly.

The younger of the two shook his head. "I don't know."

The body flicker bit the inside of his cheek. Itachi was going to _kill_ him.

He took a deep breath. "I'm so sorry Itachi. This is my fault." Shisui watched as his cousin's facial expression change from grim to signature Uchiha glare in one second, but continued on carefully. "I wanted Sasuke to stall you so I could win the bet. But I didn't mean for this to happen."

"You did this?" Itachi asked in a low voice.

Shisui could've sworn he saw Itachi's sharingan activate for a second. He could literally _feel_ the anger bubbling in his cousin. "Itachi listen-"

The prodigy turned his back on his cousin. "I'm done listening to you." he replied coldly. "I'd appreciate it if you'd never speak to me in the future."

The body flicker watched as Itachi began walking away. As much as he deserved this, he couldn't just let him walk out of their friendship just like that.

"Itachi wait," he called out. "I know what I did was bad, but we need to talk about this. We can't just drop everything!"

"Are you deaf or something? He said to never speak to him ever again. How dumb can you be?"

Shisui jerked his head to the side as he heard a familiar little voice and instinctively backed a good few feet away.

"Oh my god." the body flicker blurted out. He took a better look at who spoke and his expression grew irritated as he realized who it was. "Is that you punk?!"

Sasuke pointed a finger at Shisui. "My arms and legs are covered with cuts because of you."

Shisui marched up to his little cousin and pushed his little finger away. "You told Itachi, didn't you?"

The little Uchiha simply stuck his tongue out at him.

Shisui gritted his teeth. "Why you-!"

"I guess my plan worked." Itachi said as he came up next to Sasuke.

"Itachi, how could you do this to me?" the body flicker asked dramatically. "I really thought this brat was in the hospital."

The prodigy simply shrugged. "That's what you get for cheating."

"And coming up with a dumb plan." Sasuke added.

Shisui quickly shot him a glare, but it soon turned into a small smirk.

"Whatever, I deserved this." he said. "But don't forget Itachi, I still won this bet even though I cheated. You still have to come with me to the branch meeting."

Itachi sighed. "Fine. But you know who else should come?" The prodigy shared a smirk with Shisui before both of them looked at the youngest Uchiha.

Sasuke crossed his arms as he pouted at them. "Why do I have to come? I did nothing!"

"Yeah right," Shisui said incredulously. "You were a part of _everything_. It's only fair that you go too."

Itachi put a hand on top of his brother's head. "He's got a point otouto."

The little Uchiha huffed in annoyance as the older teens laughed at his cuteness.

"Don't worry brat. Your going to love it there." Shisui took a step towards his baby cousin, mischief written on his face. "I can just see the elders cuddling you and giving you those wet, sloppy _kisses_."

Sasuke made a horrified face.

"Don't forget them pinching those cute, little cheeks of yours." Itachi added, the same expression on his own face as he too slowly closed in on him.

The body flicker looked over at his cousin. "Shall we demonstrate?"

"Nii-san, no." Sasuke begged.

Itachi smirked. "Good idea Shisui."

Sasuke began running as fast as his little legs would take him, hoping he could escape the inevitable _torture_ that was to come.

If only he hadn't gotten involved, maybe he would've been spared.

* * *

AN: Sorry for the really sucky ending, I tried to finish this as quickly as I could. I hope you enjoyed though!

Please Review!


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